Eunpyeong-gu Pregnant Women and Infants' Families 'I-Mom Taxi' Officially Operating

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Eunpyeong-gu (Mayor Kim Mi-kyung) will officially launch the “I-Mom Taxi” project starting with a kickoff ceremony on the 31st to create a child-friendly village.

The I-Mom Taxi is a service that facilitates transportation through dedicated taxis when pregnant women and families with infants under 12 months visit hospitals or clinics for medical purposes, in collaboration between Eunpyeong-gu and local taxi companies.

Families with pregnant women and infants need to visit hospitals or clinics regularly for various checkups and vaccinations, but it is difficult to use general public transportation due to mobility challenges.

To resolve these inconveniences, the I-Mom Taxi operates with large vans (Carnival) to accommodate multiple children and strollers, and considering passenger characteristics, it is equipped with car seats, vehicle air purifiers, and mandatory daily interior disinfection to ensure convenience and safety.

Applications for using the I-Mom Taxi are made through an app. After installing the dedicated I-Mom Taxi app called “Macaron Namu,” signing up, and receiving approval from the Eunpyeong-gu administrator, advance reservations can be made.

Advance reservations are possible from 3 days to 3 hours before the service use, and after using the I-Mom Taxi service, users must submit proof documents (such as medical receipts or medical confirmation) through the app.

Since residents use the taxi through the app in a non-face-to-face manner, it is convenient for users and easy to manage. Eunpyeong-gu targets 4,500 pregnant women and families with infants in the area.

Families with infants under 12 months as of the application date can use the service free of charge up to twice a day and 10 times a year. However, this year, free use is limited to 8 times annually.

Operating hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Operations are limited to within 8 km from the departure point within the area, which is expected to contribute to revitalizing the Eunpyeong local economy.

Kim Mi-kyung, Mayor of Eunpyeong-gu, said, “Families who are pregnant or have infants need to visit hospitals regularly for treatment, but considering children with weak immunity during times like these, there are many concerns about using public transportation. The I-Mom Taxi project is a representative post-COVID project in Eunpyeong that fits well with this timely situation. This year, considering it is the initial phase of the project, it will operate with four vehicles, but if the monitoring results show high satisfaction, we plan to expand the eligible children’s age and the number of vehicles,” she said.

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