Gwangju City to Urgently Deploy 42 Chartered Buses During Commuting Hours

Emergency Measures for City Bus Strike:
14 Routes to Receive Chartered Buses
Free Rides Provided... Over 100 Additional Vehicles Planned if Strike Prolongs

On the morning of the 16th, marking the ninth day of the Gwangju city bus union strike, citizens are waiting for buses at the bus stop in front of the main gate of Honam University in Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju. Photo by Min Chanki

The Gwangju city government announced on June 17 that, starting June 18, it will deploy 42 chartered buses on 14 routes with high congestion during commuting hours (7:00-9:00 a.m. and 5:30-7:30 p.m.) to alleviate transportation inconveniences for citizens.

This measure is intended to minimize inconvenience to citizens caused by the prolonged city bus strike. The city will operate free emergency transport vehicles, focusing on routes with long intervals between buses and high congestion. Public officials will ride on the emergency chartered buses to assist passengers by providing information about bus stop arrivals and helping with boarding and alighting, aiming to reduce inconvenience for users.

The routes to receive these chartered buses are: Sunhwan01, Suwan03, Maewol06, Jinwol17, Songjeong19, Maewol26, Ilgok28, Cheomdan30, Songam31, Bongseon37, Ilgok38, Munheung39, Geumho46, and Songam47, totaling 14 routes.

The city expects that, with the deployment of these chartered buses, the average interval between buses during the morning commute on the affected routes will be reduced from 43 minutes to 21 minutes, and during the evening commute from 48 minutes to 25 minutes, effectively cutting the intervals by about half.

Bae Sangyoung, head of the public transportation division, stated, "Since the chartered buses are emergency vehicles, there may be some difficulties in providing real-time operation information," and requested, "We ask for the understanding and cooperation of citizens experiencing inconvenience."

Meanwhile, the city plans to deploy up to more than 100 additional substitute vehicles if the strike continues for a longer period, in order to further minimize inconvenience to citizens.

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