Nationwide Urban Railway Operators and Research Institutes Jointly Promote 'Fare-Free Transportation System Improvement' Research

Nationwide 8 Transit Corporations and Seoul Institute to Hold 3rd Policy Forum on Urban Rail Free Fare Transport on the 24th
Aging Population and COVID-19 Threaten Continuous Rail Service... Financial Deterioration of Operating Agencies Worsens

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Operating institutions, public corporations, and research institutes under the jurisdiction of eight metropolitan subway operating local governments, including Seoul, have jointly launched a study to address the financial deterioration and operational crisis caused by the increase in free rides for seniors and low fares relative to transportation costs in metropolitan subways.

The eight metropolitan subway operating local governments nationwide have faced a rapid increase in cumulative deficits due to the continuous expansion of subway networks, the rapid onset of aging populations, and the recent rise in risk factors such as COVID-19, seriously threatening the fiscal soundness of local governments. To provide stable and continuous service for the subway, the most common and popular mode of transportation, national government support is essential in addition to the self-help efforts of subway operating local governments and institutions. However, due to difficulties in securing funds, investment capacity has been exhausted.

Accordingly, the eight transportation corporations nationwide and the Seoul Institute recognize that the issue of national government support for free rides is not limited to a single local government but is a common problem for large cities operating metropolitan subways. They will hold a policy forum on the 24th for joint cooperation and response.

To provide stable and continuous transportation services, the forum will establish a mutual cooperation system among large cities struggling with financial difficulties caused by free ride losses in subway operations. Research institutes under local governments experiencing common difficulties with free ride losses will collaborate to seek rational and systematic response directions. At the same time, they will develop logical arguments and monitor trends regarding the central government’s stance on free ride losses to explore joint response strategies.

This policy forum for national government support for free rides is co-hosted by research institutes of metropolitan subway operating local governments nationwide, including the Seoul Institute, and sponsored by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. The Seoul Institute announced plans to operate the forum as a platform for active discussion and communication to propose and discover policies for fiscal soundness. In particular, to enhance understanding of metropolitan subways, they will explore establishing a cooperative research system based on ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) principles.

Meanwhile, centered on this third forum, related organizations such as metropolitan subway operating local governments and research institutes nationwide plan to develop the platform for public discourse and promote regular discussions going forward. They intend to prepare solutions not only for national government support strategies for free rides but also for the sustainable and stable operation of metropolitan subways.

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