Seoul to reimburse 20 percent of traffic fees for young people

For young adults, using public transportation frequently can be financially burdensome. Gettyimagesbank

By Ko Dong-hwan

The Seoul Metropolitan Government rolled out a new policy on Monday to subsidize the public transportation fees of citizens aged 19 to 24.

The city government will return 20 percent of their public transit expenses through "traffic mileage." The mileage, redeemable up to 100,000 won ($80) per year for each beneficiary, has a monetary equivalent value and can be used for public transportation operated under the city government for the next five years.

Those interested in the service can apply at youth.seoul.go.kr which purports to provide "all" information for the age group living in the city. The government-run site opens to applications on April 27 and continues until May 27. The city government plans to launch the service during the second half of this year.

The city government introduced the policy to support the age group, most of whom have graduated high school and started pursuing their careers by going to university or working part-time. For those who just turned 19 and can no longer take advantage of the student discounts for public transportation: their price for each ride on a bus or a metro soars by up to 66 percent. When using a bus, it increases from 720 won to 1,200 won.

"For these young adults who mostly still have a very weak financial status, sudden hikes in public transportation fees can be a pretty serious burden," said Kim Cheol-hee, chief of the city government's Youth and Future Planning Bureau. "If this program can lift even a small portion of burden off their shoulders as they take their first steps toward their social battles, I would be glad."

The city's latest subsidy program, laden with a budget of 15.5 billion won, aims to help 150,000 applicants. It is the largest pool ever supported by the city government dedicated to people aged 19 to 24. The city government initially had half the budget prepared last year, aiming to help 75,000 applicants, but decided to expand it further.

"For those in the age group, this subsidy program might mean that it is the first government policy they experience as an individual adult," Kim said. "So we wanted to make its effects as broad and convincing as possible."

The program is part of a set of policies Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced in March to support the city's young voting population. The program came after the city government conducted a survey on young citizens in 2020 inquiring which daily living expenses they consider the biggest burden. Public transportation fees came third, preceded by buying food and paying bills at home.

The city bureau running the subsidy program said those aged 19 to 24 have so far fallen through the cracks: although the country's Youth Basic Law defines young people as those aged 9 to 24, ordinances under the country's Youth Welfare Support Laws have been covering only those aged 9 to 18 with discounts on public transit fees.

In addition to applying for the subsidy program, the city government urged the applicants to check boxes of a list of subjects of interest on its website so that it may inform each applicant about the latest welfare policies and initiatives related to their interests.

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