Lee Jae-myung's Expansion of 'Gonggong Bus'

[Asia Economy (Uijeongbu) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province has decided to expand its 'public bus' routes and is recruiting transportation operators until the 16th of this month.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 1st that it will expand the public bus system based on a route bidding system, which currently operates 16 routes, starting this month. It is recruiting transportation operators for 8 public bus routes through a bidding announcement on the Gyeonggi Urban Innovation Corporation website (www.gico.or.kr).

The Gyeonggi public bus is one of the transportation policy pledges of Governor Lee Jae-myung of Gyeonggi Province during the 7th local government term, aiming to realize a Gyeonggi where public transportation is more convenient than private cars. It is the first in the nation to implement an operation system based on a route bidding system that strengthens public interest.

Unlike the existing private system, the public sector owns the route rights and entrusts the operation rights of bus routes to selected private transportation operators through competitive bidding for a certain period. The project started in March, and currently, 120 buses operate on 16 routes.

Among the 8 routes open for bidding this time, 7 are newly established routes, and 1 is a returned route.

The new routes include ▲Paju 1 route (Unjeong New Town) ▲Hwaseong 3 routes (Dongtan 2 New Town, Hyangnam New Town, Namyang New Town) ▲Uijeongbu 1 route (Millak-Gosan District) ▲Gwangmyeong 1 route (Gwangmyeong Station) ▲Gwangju 1 route (Gwaneum-ri), totaling 7 routes across 5 cities and counties.

Among these, 6 routes in 4 cities/counties?Paju, Hwaseong, Uijeongbu, and Gwangmyeong?are aimed at alleviating traffic congestion in new towns and housing development areas. The single Gwangju route aims to resolve public transportation inconveniences in outlying areas and revitalize local attractions.

The returned route, Uijeongbu 1 route (No. 8409), connects Suwon and Uijeongbu, major north-south hubs in the province. In addition to the existing local route, an express route will be newly established and operated.

The bidding period is until the 16th. The province plans to select transportation operators for each route within this month, undergo a three-month preparation period, and begin sequential operation starting in October.

A provincial official stated, "Starting with this bidding announcement, we plan to expand the public bus project on a large scale. We will do our best to secure public interest so that the original purpose of improving residents' mobility can be well realized."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.