Kim Dong-yeon Announces "Better Transportation Service to Be Provided with Launch of 'The Gyeonggi Pass' in May"

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park No-hun] Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon officially announced, "With the implementation of 'The Gyeonggi Pass' in May, we will provide better transportation services to Gyeonggi Province residents."

On the 22nd, Governor Kim held a joint press briefing with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Seoul, and Incheon to support public transportation fares for capital region citizens, stating, "We are aiming to launch The Gyeonggi Pass service simultaneously with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's K-Pass implementation in May."

Governor Kim said, "Transportation fare support policies should be region-tailored policies that reflect the transportation characteristics of each local government," and explained the service launch background, stating, "Gyeonggi Province designed The Gyeonggi Pass reflecting the 14 million population, vast territory, diverse transportation methods and fare systems, and transportation patterns and regional characteristics of 31 cities and counties."

He added, "Gyeonggi Province is pursuing climate change response policies most actively. By implementing The Gyeonggi Pass, we not only ease residents' transportation fare burden but also convert private vehicle demand to public transportation, preparing for climate crisis through carbon reduction."

Governor Kim defined The Gyeonggi Pass as a "nationwide transportation card" usable anywhere across the country, an "all-purpose transportation card" that can be used for all public transportation methods, and a "customer-tailored transportation card" that is conveniently auto-refunded.

The Gyeonggi Pass is a Gyeonggi Province-exclusive public transportation fare support policy that expands the K-Pass's monthly 60-trip limit to unlimited, and expands the youth eligibility for 30% refunds from ages 19-34 to ages 19-39.

Unlike Seoul's Climate Action Card, which excludes express buses and the Shinbundang Line, The Gyeonggi Pass includes all public transportation nationwide, including express buses, the Shinbundang Line, and the GTX (Metropolitan Express Railway) opening in March this year, providing greater benefits to Gyeonggi Province residents who use diverse transportation methods.

Since it operates on a refund basis, registration only needs to be done once, eliminating the need for monthly recharging. However, transportation methods requiring separate ticketing such as express buses and KTX cannot be refunded.

For example, a 38-year-old office worker commuting from Suwon to Seoul using The Gyeonggi Pass can receive a 30% refund of 33,600 won from the 112,000 won monthly transportation fee incurred when using express buses 40 times per month.

Another major advantage is that transportation fare support benefits are provided to children and teenagers under 18 who cannot use K-Pass. Gyeonggi Province plans to reorganize existing youth transportation fare support project details and expand to children ages 6 and above, providing transportation fare support within an annual limit of 240,000 won.

Meanwhile, Gyeonggi Province has finalized the BI (Brand Identity) and slogan to promote The Gyeonggi Pass utilization. The BI visualizes "The" in The Gyeonggi Pass and the plus (+) sign, carrying the meaning of becoming more plus (+) in the daily lives of all residents including office workers, students, and children. The slogan is "Connected to all roads across the Republic of Korea. The Gyeonggi Pass," emphasizing discount benefits for all public transportation nationwide.