Taxi Fares Increase Starting Tonight... Late-Night Call Fee Up to 5,000 Won

Full Implementation of Metropolitan Area Taxi 'Late-Night Dynamic Fare' System
Applicable Only in Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Incheon ... Late-Night Base Fare 11,720 KRW from February Next Year

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] Following the government's measures to alleviate taxi boarding difficulties, the 'Late-night Flexible Call Fee' system for taxis in the Seoul metropolitan area will be fully implemented starting from the night of the 3rd.

According to Kakao Mobility, from this day onward, the call fee for KakaoT taxis during late-night hours (10 PM to 3 AM the next day) will increase to a maximum of 5,000 KRW. The regions where the increase applies are Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Incheon.

When the late-night flexible call fee is applied, the call fee, which was previously up to 3,000 KRW, will rise to a maximum of 4,000 KRW (Type 3) or 5,000 KRW (Type 2). Type 2 refers to affiliated taxis such as KakaoT Blue and Makaron Taxi, while Type 3 refers to intermediary operators through taxi-hailing applications (apps) like KakaoT.

Whether to apply the late-night flexible call fee is up to the passenger's choice, and if the passenger pays the call fee, the driver cannot selectively pick long-distance passengers. When the passenger pays the call fee, the driver cannot know the passenger's destination, and affiliated taxis are assigned forcibly.

This is part of the government's measures to resolve the late-night taxi shortage. On the 4th of last month, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced the 'Late-night Taxi Shortage Alleviation Measures,' which include call fee increases and lifting taxi restrictions. Accordingly, the late-night flexible call fee system is being gradually applied to taxi platform companies such as Banban Taxi, Tada, and T-money, and the Ministry recommends that 90% of the increased call fee be distributed to taxi drivers and the remaining 10% to the platform industry.

From the 22nd, the personal taxi restriction system will also be lifted. The taxi restriction system, introduced during the 1973 oil crisis to save fuel costs, varies by region, but in Seoul, a three-day rotation system (mandatory day off every three days) is applied. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport judged that the taxi restriction system reduces supply capacity and decided to lift the restrictions uniformly in areas experiencing taxi boarding difficulties.

Separately from the government measures, Seoul City raised the basic taxi fare from 3,800 KRW to 4,800 KRW, an increase of 1,000 KRW. The basic distance will also be reduced from 2 km to 1.6 km, shortening by 400 meters. Once the taxi fare and call fee plans of the government and Seoul City are finalized, from February next year, if a taxi is called via app between midnight and 2 AM, the basic fare could be about 6,720 KRW (basic fare of 4,800 KRW plus a 40% late-night surcharge) with a maximum call fee of 5,000 KRW, making the total basic fare up to approximately 11,720 KRW.

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