Party and Government "Considering Lifting Taxi Restriction... Late-Night Call Fee Increase Inevitable"

Sung Il-jong, Chairman of the Policy Committee of the People Power Party, is delivering opening remarks at the party-government meeting held at the National Assembly on the 28th to discuss measures to resolve the late-night taxi shortage. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporters Lee Ji-eun and Kwon Hyun-ji] The ruling party has requested the government to lift taxi restrictions and increase late-night call fees to alleviate the 'late-night taxi shortage,' while also expanding late-night public transportation such as 'Owl Buses.'

On the morning of the 28th, Seong Il-jong, chairman of the People Power Party's Policy Committee, met with reporters after a party-government meeting at the National Assembly to prepare countermeasures for the late-night taxi shortage. He stated, "We reached a consensus that easing regulations and adjusting late-night call fees are necessary to solve the problems related to late-night taxis."

He said, "There seems to be no problem with taxi supply, but despite having enough taxis, the lack of differential pricing makes it difficult for drivers to work during late-night hours, which they tend to avoid. Improving this is urgent," adding, "It is important to create favorable conditions for working at night, and the party and government agreed that it would be best to raise fees only during late-night hours without increasing daytime fares at all."

During the party-government meeting, the ruling party requested the government to ▲lift taxi restrictions ▲simplify driver employment procedures ▲implement hourly labor contracts ▲expand flexible late-night call fees ▲and expand late-night public transportation. Chairman Seong said, "We requested lifting taxi restrictions because we thought it would be difficult to solve the late-night taxi problem without regulatory reform," and added, "The government agreed to actively consider this."

He also said, "We requested to simplify employment procedures for drivers and to allow flexible use of garages and overnight parking. We asked for the implementation of hourly labor contracts to expand drivers' operations at night," adding, "There was consensus between the party and government that expanding flexible late-night call fees is inevitable to revitalize mobility, so an increase in late-night call fees is unavoidable."

Chairman Seong added that they also requested the expansion of late-night public transportation such as Owl Buses to broaden public transportation options. He said, "The party will review this carefully and report to the high-level party-government meeting on the 3rd of next month, and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will announce the plan on the 4th."

If late-night call fees increase, the burden on consumers using taxis at night will grow. Considering that the 'Tada Ban Law' established by the previous government is cited as one of the main causes of the late-night taxi shortage, the government's regulations ultimately translate into higher costs for consumers.

Chairman Seong emphasized, "The increase applies to the period from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m., so there may be concerns about inflation, but improving transportation conditions is more urgent," adding, "There is no change to the fare structure itself."

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