Hwaseong Expands Free Public Transportation to Seniors Ages 65 and Older

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Jung Jun-sung] Hwaseong City, which last year became the first in the Seoul metropolitan area to introduce free public transportation for children and youth, will expand the program to seniors ages 65 and older starting July 1st.

Free public transportation is part of "Hwaseong-style Green New Deal," an initiative to guarantee citizens' right to mobility and activate public transportation to reduce carbon emissions, a leading cause of the climate crisis.

The program operates by refunding card usage amounts when boarding city buses and village buses within the city. To date, a total of approximately 30,800 children and youth ages 7-18 have received refunds totaling 466 million won through May usage.

As the program expands to include seniors, a total of 16,000 seniors have registered for free transportation cards since May 8th.

In particular, the program allows use of the existing G-pass card, a subway exempt card issued to Gyeonggi Province residents, thereby enhancing convenience while significantly reducing the budget required for issuing new cards.

Hwaseong Mayor Seo Chul-mo said, "Free public transportation guarantees citizens' fundamental right to mobility while responding to the climate crisis through sustainable urban policy," and asked for expectations for "a transition to eco-friendly public transportation alongside bus public operation."

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