Seoul City Strengthens Crackdown on Illegal Acts Including Unfair Taxi Fare Charges Targeting Foreigners

원본보기 아이콘

원본보기 아이콘

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Seoul City announced on the 20th that it will strengthen crackdowns on illegal taxi operations targeting foreigners in order to enhance the image of Seoul as an advanced city, as the number of foreign visitors, which had decreased due to the impact of COVID-19, is gradually increasing.

Previously, from November 1 of last year to March 31 of this year, Seoul City deployed 18 enforcement officers proficient in English, Japanese, and Chinese to continuously monitor the situation, including conducting surveys on foreigners using airports. During this process, 2,846 on-site interviews regarding foreigners' transportation inconveniences were conducted, resulting in the detection of 139 cases of illegal operations, indicating that violations have been consistently occurring.

The crackdown results showed that although the time surcharge is not applied from Seoul to Incheon International Airport, 84% of the illegal taxi operations targeting foreigners involved unfair fare collection by applying a 20% time surcharge to taxi fares.

The locations where illegal operations were confirmed were dominated by Incheon International Airport, accounting for 94% of the total. Gimpo International Airport's international flights have been suspended since March 2020, and domestic flights had almost no foreign users. Major city transportation hubs, duty-free shops, hotels, and shopping centers have not yet seen a relatively active influx of foreigners.

The main contents of the illegal operations were identified as ▲ unfair fare collection by applying a time surcharge of 20% on top of the regular fare ▲ 'meter non-use,' where the fare is agreed upon with the passenger in advance ▲ operating outside the business area by picking up passengers in regions other than Seoul while driving empty taxis.

Taxi drivers and transportation operators caught for illegal operations are subject to fines or penalties under the Taxi Transport Business Act and the Passenger Transport Service Act. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport applies a "three strikes out" system for unfair fare collection, where drivers lose their taxi license after being caught three times.

Seoul City plans to reinforce enforcement personnel from 18 to 25 and focus crackdowns on illegal operations mainly at Incheon International Airport, where frequent violations occur. With the increase in tourists, the crackdown areas will be expanded beyond airports to places frequently visited by foreigners such as Daehangno, Namsan, and Hanok Village.

Baek Ho, Director of Urban Transportation at Seoul City, said, "We plan to continuously crack down on illegal taxi operations to ensure that foreigners visiting in increasing numbers do not experience transportation inconveniences," adding, "We will also communicate with the taxi industry by sharing frequently occurring illegal operation cases to encourage the industry to voluntarily maintain transportation order and work on preventing illegal operations."

원본보기 아이콘

© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.