Jeonnam Province Provides Hundreds of Billions in Financial Support to Bus Companies but Is Unaware of Bus Dispatch Times

Unable to Disclose Financial Support Payment Information... Information Must Be Compiled and Processed, Hence Nonexistent
"Only Provide Operation Permits by Carrier and Route"... Criticism of Poor Management

[Suncheon=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Hyung-kwon] “Why has the bus to Gwangju, which used to come every 10 minutes, now increased to once every hour?” a citizen visiting Suncheon General Bus Terminal asked.

“I think it has increased even more recently, using COVID-19 as an excuse. I heard the bus companies receive hundreds of billions of won in subsidies every year, but it feels very inconvenient,” another citizen waiting for the bus to Gwangju added.

The interval between intercity buses running between Suncheon and Gwangju has significantly increased to an hour, causing dissatisfaction among residents.

Until the 1990s, the Suncheon-Gwangju route was considered a golden route, with intervals of about 10 minutes when including the Yeosu-Gwangju route via Suncheon.

On the 23rd of last month, Asia Economy requested information disclosure from Jeonnam Province regarding the intercity bus routes (Gwangju-Mokpo, Gwangju-Naju, Gwangju-Suncheon, Gwangju-Yeosu, Gwangju-Gwangyang), including bus intervals and subsidy details for intercity bus companies.

In response, Jeonnam Province stated, “Information on bus intervals for each intercity bus route is managed by each transportation company, so there is no data produced or received by the provincial office, and thus it is processed as non-existent.”

This means Jeonnam Province does not have data on intercity bus intervals.

In other words, Jeonnam Province admits that it does not even know the bus intervals for the residents’ transportation while paying hundreds of billions of won in subsidies to transportation companies every year with taxpayers’ money, leading to criticism of poor management.

Regarding bus intervals, a provincial official said, “When a transportation company files a business change plan stating how many times they will operate a route, we review and grant permission. We decide through consultation and coordination with five transportation companies.”

Summarizing the official’s statement, it appears that without integrated management, the province only grants operation permits after consulting with the five companies, but does not have a comprehensive timetable for bus intervals.

Regarding subsidy details for intercity bus companies, the province stated, “Information on intercity bus subsidies over the past 10 years requires compilation and processing, so it is treated as non-existent.”

This shows that despite providing financial support amounting to about 13 billion won last year, Jeonnam Province does not compile this information, revealing a desk-based administrative approach.

Jeonnam Province provided last year’s financial support of 13 billion won differentially to five companies based in the province (Kumho, Kwangshin, Kwangwoo, Dongbang, Donggwang Damyang) based on the number of vehicles owned, fuel consumption, and deficit losses.

The reason Jeonnam Province provides financial support is to maintain intercity bus routes that serve as residents’ transportation.

If bus companies stop operating due to deficit routes, residents’ mobility will be restricted, and the resulting economic losses and inconvenience will fall entirely on ordinary citizens who rely solely on public transportation.

A Jeonnam Province official said, “We do not support deficit operations on specific routes. We verify the accounts of each transportation company overall and provide support. When companies input data electronically into the system, we verify and provide funds within the budget.”

There are growing calls that Jeonnam Province’s intercity bus administration must move beyond desk-based management to a comprehensive and proactive approach for the regional economy and residents’ lives, and that a comprehensive review of financial subsidies is necessary.

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