Gwangju Office of Education and Teachers' Group Differ on Standards for Transportation Fees for Students with Disabilities

Conflicting Interpretations Over Bus Fare Calculation Standards
Teachers' Union: "Support Reduced Due to G-Pass"
City Office of Education: "Guardian-Based Support Maintained"

As a teachers' association in Gwangju raised concerns over the calculation method for transportation expenses for students with disabilities and called for improvements, the Gwangju Office of Education responded by stating, "The standards have been maintained, and there has been no actual reduction in support."

Gwangju Office of Education building.

The Gwangju Teachers' Union issued a statement on the 28th, arguing, "With the introduction of the Gwangju G-Pass policy this year, bus fares for elementary and middle school students have been exempted, which has reduced the bus fare basis used to calculate transportation expenses for students with disabilities. As a result, the annual transportation subsidy has been reduced by about 190,000 won compared to last year." They added, "Students with disabilities do not actually use buses; most commute with their guardians or activity assistants. The method of calculating based on bus fares does not reflect reality," they criticized.

The G-Pass policy is a youth transportation support policy implemented by Gwangju City this year, providing free bus rides for children aged 6 to 12 and a 50% fare discount for teenagers. Reflecting this policy, the Gwangju Office of Education adjusted the daily round-trip bus fare used in calculations from 1,800 won to 800 won for students using buses.

Regarding this, the Office of Education explained, "For students and guardians using private vehicles or other individual transportation, we still provide 5,600 won per day, the same as last year. If the bus fare is exempted due to the G-Pass policy, we do not provide separate transportation expenses for those students, but if accompanied by a guardian, the same amount as before is paid." They added that, to improve transportation conditions for special schools, two additional school buses have been added, bringing the total to 44, and that one more hydrogen bus will be supported this year, as was done last year.

The Gwangju Teachers' Union is using this issue as an opportunity to call for a fundamental review of the standards for calculating transportation support for students with disabilities, urging for a realistic support plan of "10,000 won per day."

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