Civil groups call Busan’s review of its public transit operating system a sham

[Financial News] In May, ahead of the June local elections, Busan Metropolitan City Government commissioned a study titled the “comprehensive review of the public transportation operating system.” Critics now say the review is little more than window dressing and should be scrapped.
Members of the Busan Public Interest Coalition held a press conference at the briefing room of the Busan Metropolitan Council on the morning of the 27th and made that demand.
The city had previously commissioned a 700 million won study to comprehensively review the public transit operating system, marking 20 years since the introduction of the semi-public bus system. But the group argued that the study includes provisions such as using taxpayers’ money to cover private operators’ losses, calling it a textbook example of irresponsible administration disguised as reform.
Busan Metropolitan City Government’s bus subsidy budget has surged from 31.3 billion won in 2007 to 295 billion won last year. The cumulative total has surpassed 2.8 trillion won, making it one of the factors threatening the city’s fiscal sustainability.
The coalition said a review of the operating system is necessary, but pointed to numerous flaws in the related study. “The city already has data through its work with the Busan Development Institute, as it prepares plans such as the basic public transit plan, the metropolitan transport plan, and the traffic safety plan almost every year. However, this research project once again includes a basic status survey and data collection, wasting both budget and time,” it said. “It is also hard to understand why subway and light rail transit, which account for a high share of passenger transport in Busan, were excluded from the scope.”
It also argued, “The ‘fair valuation of route rights’ specified in the task description would recognize intangible operating licenses as private property,” adding, “The so-called ‘Busan-style exit model,’ which guarantees massive taxpayer compensation to private operators, is nothing more than a special favor that effectively confirms public route rights as private assets.”
A representative from the Busan Citizens’ Coalition for Participatory Democracy, who attended the press conference, said, “This study is designed to protect the vested interests of bus companies and should be scrapped immediately.” The representative added, “Instead, a public-private task force team should be formed to redesign the project from scratch. We must stop closed-door research with bureaucrat-led contractors and reestablish the work around structural reform with the participation of civic groups and transportation experts.”
[email protected] Byeon Ok-hwan Reporter