Basic Toll Fee Waived for Re-entering Highway Within 15 Minutes After Mistaken Exit

Starting in October, a new policy will be implemented that exempts drivers from the basic toll fee if they mistakenly exit the highway and re-enter through the same tollgate within 15 minutes. The exemption applies to the portion of the toll already paid.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and Korea Expressway Corporation announced on May 19 that this improvement measure was developed in cooperation with the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission and other agencies, reflecting issues raised in last year's National Assembly audit. Previously, drivers who exited the highway at the wrong location were inconvenienced by having to pay the basic toll fee twice, even for short distances, but this measure is expected to resolve that issue.

An electronic display at the Ilsan Bridge tollgate in Geolpo-dong, Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do, shows a notice about toll discounts for electric and hydrogen vehicles. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Highway tolls consist of a basic fee of 900 won per vehicle, plus a distance-based fee calculated per kilometer. Under the new measure, vehicles using electronic payment methods that mistakenly exit and re-enter a closed section of a government-funded highway through the same tollgate within 15 minutes will be eligible for the exemption. The benefit can be applied up to three times per vehicle per year. Data shows that over 90% of re-entry cases involve drivers who mistakenly exit up to three times a year.

With this measure, it is expected that approximately 7.5 million cases will benefit annually. Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yoon-duk stated, "Once this measure is implemented, it will help prevent accidents caused by sudden lane changes due to mistaken exits and provide a total toll discount benefit of 6.8 billion won to highway users."

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