"Asked to Wear a Mask, Endured 10 Minutes of Ear-Piercing Insults... Taxi Drivers Fear Grabbing the Steering Wheel"

"XX Nom-a" Middle-aged Actor, Drunk and Abuses Taxi Driver
74% of Taxi Drivers Experience Assault and Verbal Abuse, Suffering Mental Distress
Seoul City "Will Continuously Demand Government to Mandate Installation of Partition Walls"

It has been confirmed that middle-aged actor A verbally abused and insulted a taxi driver who asked him to "please wear a mask."
Photo by YTN Broadcast Screen Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Recently, it was revealed that middle-aged actor A verbally abused and insulted a taxi driver who asked him to "please wear a mask," bringing the issue of 'gapjil' behavior toward taxi drivers back into the spotlight. Drivers suffer from mental distress and agony as they cannot actively respond even when assaulted or verbally abused by passengers. Since there is a risk of serious accidents, there are calls for urgent safety measures.

According to a YTN report, actor A, who has been in the industry for 40 years, boarded a taxi with two companions after drinking in Sindorim-dong, Guro-gu, Seoul on the 10th. While on the phone with an acquaintance inside the taxi, A lowered his mask, and taxi driver B asked him to "please put the mask back on."

In response, A said, "What?" and then began to curse. The black box footage installed inside the taxi captured A pointing his finger at B and verbally abusing him with phrases such as "You son of a b****," and "You should speak nicely, but you’re f***ing the customer."

A still seemed angry and even raised his fist as if to hit B. His companions barely restrained him, and A got out of the taxi before reaching the destination.

In an interview with the media, B said, "Usually, people don’t curse, and even if they do, it’s just once or twice. This is the first time someone cursed for about 10 minutes straight until my ears hurt," expressing that he felt humiliated by A’s verbal abuse.

Taxis waiting for passengers at the taxi stand.
Photo by Yonhap News

Verbal abuse and assault against taxi drivers by passengers have been ongoing issues for quite some time. Recently, there was an incident where Shin Jae-hwan, a gold medalist gymnast at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, assaulted a taxi driver while intoxicated and was handed over to the prosecution.

According to the Yuseong Police Station in Daejeon, on the 15th, Shin Jae-hwan got into a taxi stopped near Banseok Station on Daejeon’s Urban Railway Line 1 in Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, and suddenly assaulted the driver who asked for his destination. The victim driver reportedly sustained injuries requiring two weeks of medical treatment due to the assault.

Meanwhile, former Deputy Minister of Justice Lee Yong-gu is currently on trial for assaulting a taxi driver last November by grabbing and pushing the driver’s neck on his way home. It is reported that Lee committed the act after the taxi driver woke him up while he was drunk and sleeping, cursing at him.

A 2015 survey conducted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government targeting taxi drivers (500 individual drivers and 91 corporate operators) revealed that a staggering 74% had experienced assault or verbal abuse from passengers.

According to statistics from the National Police Agency, incidents of assault against drivers such as taxi and bus drivers have been increasing over the past three years: 2,425 cases in 2018, 2,587 in 2019, and 2,894 in 2020, averaging about eight assault cases per day last year.

Protective partition installed in a taxi. Photo by Yonhap News

As taxi driver assault incidents continue to occur, Seoul City announced measures in September to establish a reporting system inside taxis and support the installation of protective partitions. The city also stated plans to add alarm sounds to taxi signs on new vehicles released from next year.

The partition is a barrier installed between the driver’s seat and the rear passenger seat and has been cited as the most effective solution to prevent assaults on taxi drivers. However, some taxi drivers hesitate to install partitions, citing discomfort and stuffiness during long hours of driving.

Nevertheless, there are opinions that partition installation is necessary to minimize safety accidents caused by passenger verbal abuse or assault. Taxi driver Kim, in his 50s, said, "It might feel stuffy to ride in a taxi with a partition all day," but added, "Considering the COVID-19 situation and the anxiety when picking up intoxicated passengers at night, it would be better to make installation mandatory."

Seoul City stated that it will continue to request the government to mandate the installation of partitions inside taxi vehicles. A city urban transportation office official told Asia Economy, "This year, we planned to install partitions in 500 corporate and individual taxis, and so far, 493 have been equipped. Making partitions mandatory requires amendments to related laws. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport is responsible, but if the budget is secured, the city will support installation and continue to request the government to make it mandatory."

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