Seoul Metro and Metro Transit Corporation Merger Initiative Halted

The Seoul Metropolitan Council voted to completely eliminate 132.679 million won in budget that the Seoul City government had earmarked through a supplementary budget for the merger and innovation initiative between Seoul Metro (Lines 1-4) and the Seoul Metro Transit Corporation (Lines 5-8) at a plenary session held on the 4th.

Despite the supplementary budget being intended for economic revitalization and stabilization of people's livelihoods in response to the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) crisis, the council objected to unrelated budget items being included.

Additionally, the lack of a feasibility assessment for the merger of the two operators was also pointed out.

Councilor Woo Hyung-chan of the Seoul Metropolitan Council's Transportation Committee, who led the effort to cut this budget, stated in this regard, "It is unacceptable for citizens that the supplementary budget was established without even a single prior briefing or interim report regarding the projects currently underway."

Last December, Seoul City announced plans to complete the merger of Metro, which operates Lines 1-4, and the Seoul Metro Transit Corporation, which operates Lines 5-8, by the end of next year.

Following this announcement, Seoul City established an innovation promotion committee for the merger and is conducting research projects on organizational management, finance, and information systems.

Councilor Woo emphasized, "This budget cut will serve as an important warning bell against Seoul City's administrative practice of unilaterally pushing through the merger after having predetermined the conclusion of integration without detailed examination."

In particular, Councilor Woo stated, "The Seoul City Department of Urban Transportation, which is promoting the merger of the two corporations going forward, should make the safety of citizens who use the transit system an average of 2.67 million times daily their top priority, rather than being an organization or project intended to support Mayor Park Won-soon's integration decision." He added, "Above all, the direction of the project should be determined with consideration for management efficiency first, and then implemented accordingly."

On this day, the Seoul Metropolitan Council cut 88 billion won from the 896.1 billion won supplementary budget submitted by the city and approved 808.1 billion won.