Oh Se-hoon "Government Must Step Up on Subway Fare Evasion Losses"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon is attending the Cabinet meeting held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 31st. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon requested the government to compensate for the losses caused by free subway rides during a Cabinet meeting.

According to Seoul City on the 31st, Mayor Oh attended the Cabinet meeting that day and stated, "The financial losses incurred from the government's free ride policy should no longer be passed on as a burden to local governments," adding, "The only solution is for the government to directly compensate for these losses."

Mayor Oh continued, "This strike stems from the chronic deficits of urban railways and the resulting restructuring," and pointed out, "It is no exaggeration to say that citizens' mobility is at risk due to the government's free ride policy without national subsidies, which is the main cause of the deficit." In Seoul, the possibility of collective action has increased, with the strike being approved by a high voter turnout of 91.5% and 81.6% in favor.

Mayor Oh revealed that over the past five years, the Seoul Transportation Corporation has suffered an average annual loss of 336.8 billion KRW due to free rides, accounting for 53% of its net loss, and the loss is expected to reach 450 billion KRW next year.

He emphasized that Seoul City has reached a limit it can hardly bear, stating, "With the accelerating aging population, the number of free riders continues to increase, ridership demand has decreased due to prolonged social distancing, and reinvestment needs for aging facilities have surged, causing Seoul's subway finances to suffer a triple burden."

He added, "Just as the government compensates for Korail's free ride losses based on the Railroad Industry Development Act, the Urban Railway Act should also explicitly provide a basis for the government to directly compensate for losses," and said, "Despite four proposals this year alone, unfortunately, government support for free ride losses was not reflected in the next year's government budget bill submitted to the National Assembly early next month. I respectfully urge the President, the Ministers of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, and Welfare, and other related Cabinet members to give this matter thorough consideration."

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