'The Gyeonggi Pass' Surpasses 530,000 Subscribers

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Kim Gap-dong] 'The Gyeonggi Pass' surpassed 530,000 subscribers just 20 days after the business launch.

According to Gyeonggi Province on May 23, the K-Pass nationwide subscribers linked to The Gyeonggi Pass reached 1.3 million as of May 20 afternoon.

Among these, The Gyeonggi Pass subscribers number 530,000. Of the 530,000 Gyeonggi Pass subscribers, 230,000 are new subscribers and 300,000 are conversions from existing transportation savings cards. The Gyeonggi Pass new subscribers account for 50% of all K-Pass new subscribers (450,000).

Incheon and Seoul, metropolitan areas like Gyeonggi Province, have 110,000 and 400,000 subscribers respectively, with Gyeonggi Province accounting for over 40% of all K-Pass subscribers nationwide.

As The Gyeonggi Pass subscribers surged beyond initial expectations and received enthusiastic response, the province held a meeting at the departmental director level led by Kim Sang-soo, Director of Transportation, on May 23 with city and county officials to help residents who are unaware or find it difficult to apply and to promote subscriptions. The province requested cooperation to secure stable finances and assist residents in publicity blind spots.

Director Kim Sang-soo stated, "With The Gyeonggi Pass subscribers rapidly increasing, cooperation from cities and counties is very necessary," and added, "We will unite our efforts and cooperate so that all residents can receive greater benefits."

Meanwhile, The Gyeonggi Pass expands the K-Pass monthly limit of 60 rides to unlimited and provides a refund of 20% of monthly public transportation costs (30% for young people in their 20s and 30s, 20% for ages 40 and above, 53% for low-income groups). The youth qualification for the 30% refund category has also been expanded from ages 19-34 to 19-39. Applications for the 'Gyeonggi Province Children and Youth Transportation Subsidy Project,' which supports 240,000 won annually to reduce transportation costs for children and adolescents not covered by the project, have been accepted since May 2.