When Will the Verdict on Seoul City's Central Bus-Only Lane Station Operation Rights Be Reached?

Operation of 230 Major Central Bus-Only Lane Stops in Seoul Including Gwanghwamun-daero and Gangnam-daero; Foreign Company B Loses Second Trial Against Seoul City and Appeals... When Will the Conclusion Come? Attention on When Seoul City Will Select a New Operator

Sinsa Station Bus Central Lane Stop

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] “Who takes the advertising revenue at the central bus-only lane stops in Seoul?”

Mr. Kim, whom we met at the Sinsa Station bus stop in Gangnam-gu, asked this question.

It turned out that the foreign company B takes the advertising revenue because B operates the stops.

The details are as follows.

Seoul opened the central bus-only lanes in July 2004. On July 1, 2003, Seoul signed an exclusive contract with foreign company B for the operation rights of bus stops due to time constraints.

However, the Board of Audit and Inspection concluded in its December 2017 audit that the exclusive contract was processed due to time constraints to meet the bus-only central lane stop opening schedule (July 1, 2003), violating laws.

As a result, company B has held the management and operation rights of Seoul’s bus stop facilities for 17 years, operating 230 central bus-only lane stops on major roads such as Gwanghwamun-daero, Mapo-daero, Gangnam-daero, and Cheonho-daero, reportedly earning tens to hundreds of billions of won annually from advertising revenue alone.

In particular, as B’s contract period ended in late October 2019, Seoul announced a new operator selection, but B filed an injunction to prevent demolition, halting the selection process and continuing legal disputes.

However, on August 27 last year, the Seoul Central District Court dismissed B’s injunction lawsuit, stating that “Seoul City can be evaluated as having fulfilled its obligation to negotiate with B in good faith regarding business conditions.”

Seoul City won the case. Then B appealed to the Seoul High Court, and on the 23rd of last month, Seoul City won again.

Recently, B reportedly appealed to the Supreme Court, raising suspicions that the lawsuits are merely to buy time.

The problem is that Seoul City has not imposed proper sanctions despite B not paying usage fees, citing ongoing litigation.

Regarding this, a Seoul City official said, “Since the lawsuit is ongoing, there is no legal means to stop B’s business,” expressing difficulty.

However, Mr. Choi from Seoul City said, “Despite B repeatedly losing lawsuits against Seoul City, no significant sanctions have been imposed, resulting in an unfair case where a private company profits from public assets of Seoul citizens,” adding, “We must meet the heightened expectations of citizens and further strengthen the public nature of public transportation.”

Attention is focused on when a wise decision will be made and Seoul City will take appropriate measures.

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