According to the government on Tuesday, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport sent official notices to public agencies on Monday and Tuesday instructing them to wind down capital-area charter commuter bus operations run by agencies moved to innovation cities. The guidance calls for ending operations within three months, and completing all terminations within six months if contract cancellations trigger penalties.
The step follows comments by President Lee Jae Myung at a New Year’s news conference on Jan. 21, when he said there is no relocation effect if agencies move to the regions but still run charter buses for commuting to the capital.
A ministry survey found that, as of the end of last year, 47 of 149 relocated public agencies were operating charter commuter buses to the capital region.
The buses operate from eight innovation cities, excluding Busan and Jeju, with about 22 billion won spent annually. In North Chungcheong Province, 10 of 11 agencies run weekday commuter buses to the capital region; in Gangwon Province, six of 11 do.
Commuter buses for civil servants traveling between the capital region and the Government Complex Sejong were fully suspended in December 2021.
The ministry said that more than a decade after the relocations, some agencies are still running commuter buses for employees traveling to the capital rather than supporting local settlement. It said the practice undermines regional economic contributions and efforts to revitalize innovation cities, and that the decision was made after interagency discussions.
Separately, the ministry said it plans to speed up work to improve living conditions in innovation cities. It said ministries are identifying short-term tasks with their affiliated agencies and will also work with local governments to develop measures to improve conditions in innovation cities during a second phase of public agency relocations.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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