The Seoul Metropolitan Council passed an ordinance on Wednesday for free bus rides for citizens aged 70 and over. The measure was approved by a 69-1 vote with five abstentions.
The Seoul Metropolitan Council passed an ordinance Wednesday calling for the introduction of free bus rides for citizens aged 70 and over. The proposal, which calls for subsidizing all or part of city and community bus fares for the senior citizens based on criteria set by the mayor, passed a plenary council session by a 69-1 vote, with five abstentions.
Details, such as the extent of the subsidy and its implementation method, will be decided by the city government at a later date. The city government has also been looking to raise the eligible age for free subway rides from the current 65 to 70.
The introduction of free bus rides for senior citizens was a campaign pledge of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon during the June 3 local elections. It aims to expand public transport services for people living in areas without a subway station. The city government has said, however, that to minimize the financial burden the number of free rides could be capped at 14 per month.
According to its estimate, providing that many free rides will cost approximately 52.5 billion won (US$34 million) a year, but would be offset by an additional 57.2 billion won in income from raising the eligible age for free subway rides. Oh plans to hold a public hearing early next month to gather the opinions of senior citizens, experts and the general public. If a social consensus is reached early, the city government expects the new system to be enforced as soon as next year, but no timeline has been set yet.
