Daegu City Increases Urban Railway and City Bus Fares by 250 Won After 7 Years... 1250 Won → 1500 Won

Effective January 13 Next Year

Children and Youth Fares Frozen

Daegu City will raise the fares for city buses and urban railways by 250 KRW (standard for general passengers using transportation cards) starting January 13 next year, while keeping the fares for youth and children unchanged. This fare adjustment is the first in seven years since December 2016 and was finalized through deliberation and resolution at the Daegu Regional Economic Council meeting held on November 22.

Despite rising public transportation operating costs due to increased labor and fuel expenses, Daegu City had postponed fare adjustments considering the financial burden on citizens. However, due to a continuous decline in cost recovery rates caused by decreased ridership after COVID-19 and fares lower than operating costs, the fare adjustment became inevitable.

Daegu City Hall

Earlier, the ‘Appropriate Fare Review Service’ conducted in August and September indicated fare increase factors of 1,550 KRW for city buses (from 1,250 KRW to 2,800 KRW) and 2,550 KRW for urban railways (from 1,250 KRW to 3,800 KRW) to cover operating costs.

However, Daegu City proposed three much lower increase options: 250 KRW (cost recovery rate: city bus 53.5%, urban railway 21.9%), 300 KRW (cost recovery rate: city bus 54.9%, urban railway 22.6%), and 350 KRW (cost recovery rate: city bus 57%, urban railway 23.4%). After public hearings, consultations with the Transportation Improvement Committee, and deliberations by the Public Utility Price and Inflation Subcommittee of the Regional Economic Council, the final decision was to raise fares by 250 KRW while freezing youth and children fares to minimize the burden on users.

With this public transportation fare adjustment, from January 13 next year, fares for city buses and urban railways using transportation cards will increase from 1,250 KRW to 1,500 KRW for general passengers, and express buses from 1,650 KRW to 1,950 KRW. Cash fares will rise from 1,400 KRW to 1,700 KRW for city buses and urban railways, and from 1,800 KRW to 2,200 KRW for express buses. Fares for children and youth will remain unchanged.

In August, Seoul and Ulsan raised city bus fares by 300 KRW and 250 KRW respectively, and in October, Busan and Incheon increased fares by 350 KRW and 250 KRW respectively. Thus, before Daegu’s recent fare hike decision, several metropolitan cities had already announced public transportation fare increases.

Along with the fare increase, Daegu City plans to reduce transportation expenses through rigorous management rationalization of bus companies and urban railways, and significantly improve services so that the fare increase benefits citizens’ convenience in using public transportation.

For city buses, plans include extending the vehicle age limit by one year (from 9 to 10 years, saving 1.64 billion KRW annually), deducting 30% of any excess amount when executive salaries exceed limits from management evaluation profits, improving fuel savings by enhancing drivers’ driving habits, expanding Saturday reduced service operation from 5% to 10% (saving 1.97 billion KRW annually), and increasing eco-friendly hydrogen buses by introducing 30 units by 2025. These continuous management rationalizations aim to reduce financial support funds.

To improve city bus services and promote usage, Daegu City will continue extending last stop times (scheduled for February 2023), gradually expand free rides for senior citizens on public transportation (from age 74 and above in 2024 to age 70 and above by 2028), implement the Daegu-Gyeongbuk metropolitan public transportation transfer system (scheduled for late 2024), introduce 100% low-floor buses by 2030 to enhance mobility for transportation-vulnerable groups, expand and operate Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) services to improve accessibility in underserved areas (scheduled for late 2024), and actively promote the Daegu-style integrated transportation service MaaS platform and subscription fare system to enhance public transportation services and usage.

For urban railways, Daegu City will continue financial savings measures by operating a tight budget, improving operations, and discovering revenue-increasing tasks, aiming to save 31.7 billion KRW by 2025 through management improvement projects.

Daegu City Bus

Additionally, efforts will be made to enhance customer convenience and safety by improving signage on Line 2 for better visibility, installing non-slip stair treads in stations to prevent slip accidents, and adding illegal filming prevention facilities in escalators and restrooms to prevent sexual crimes. Various cultural services such as photo contests and busking performances will be provided to create a citizen-centered urban railway environment.

Daegu City has secured a budget of 5.7 billion KRW (including national and city funds) for public transportation subsidies next year to provide fare reimbursement support, thereby easing transportation costs for low-income and youth groups who frequently use public transportation (city buses and urban railways).

Kim Daeyoung, Director of the Daegu City Transportation Bureau, stated, “Since the last fare increase in December 2016, Daegu City has postponed fare hikes for seven years considering the financial difficulties caused by high inflation. However, to ensure stable operation of public transportation, this fare adjustment has become unavoidable. We ask for broad understanding from citizens.” He added, “We will continue to pursue financial savings measures and make multifaceted efforts to improve services so that citizens can use public transportation more conveniently and safely.”

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