Incheon airport operator to halve employee parking permits
Corrective measure follows land ministry inspection
Vehicles are parked at a long-term parking lot at Incheon International Airport, Aug. 4, 2024. Korea Times photo by Choi Joo-yeon
Incheon International Airport Corp. (IIAC) will slash the number of parking permits issued to airport employees by more than half beginning Wednesday, as part of a sweeping reform aimed at addressing lax management and the misuse of employee parking privileges, the state-run airport operator said.
The measure follows a recent inspection by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which found that IIAC had issued an excessive number of long-term parking permits, while failing to adequately oversee their use.
The audit also identified cases in which some employees used complimentary parking privileges for personal purposes rather than for work-related needs.
In response, IIAC has pledged to completely overhaul its employee parking permit system, invalidating all existing permits and requiring workers to reapply under stricter eligibility criteria.
Under the revised rules, the standard for obtaining a permit will be tightened from cases where parking is considered “necessary for work” to circumstances where it is deemed “essential for work.” The corporation plans to reduce the total number of permits issued to no more than 50 percent of the current level.
More than 30,000 employee parking permits, including both paid and complimentary passes, are currently in circulation. All of them will become invalid from Wednesday, after which a new screening process will determine eligibility under the stricter standards.
Kim Bum-ho, right, acting president of Incheon International Airport Corp., inspects key facilities at the airport's Terminal 1 on Yeongjong Island, May 7. Yonhap
According to the ministry audit released in May, IIAC and its affiliated subsidiaries had collectively issued 31,265 parking permits, equivalent to 84.5 percent of the airport’s total parking capacity of 36,971 spaces across short-term and long-term parking lots.
Despite the large number of permits issued, the average daily utilization rate stood at only 5,134 vehicles, or 13.8 percent of the total permits.
The airport operator said it will maximize passenger access to highly sought-after short-term parking lots located near the terminals, while retaining only the minimum amount of space necessary for airport operations. As a result, parking spaces reserved for resident employees within the most popular short-term lots will be reduced by 59 percent from the current levels, IIAC said.
Overall, at least 500 parking spaces are expected to be converted exclusively for passenger use.
Recognizing that the changes may create inconvenience for workers, IIAC also plans to introduce two dedicated shuttle bus routes connecting long-term parking lots and passenger terminals. The corporation said the new services will reduce shuttle waiting times by more than 50 percent.
“We will continue to make improvements through a three-month monitoring period,” IIAC Acting President Kim Bum-ho said during a briefing Tuesday.
“We are prepared to accept inconvenience for ourselves in order to enhance the convenience of airport users,” he added. “IIAC will do our utmost to ensure that the airport fulfills its role as a national public facility serving the people.”
Unionized workers from Incheon International Airport Corp.'s three subsidiaries stage a rally in front of the airport's Terminal 2 on Yeongjong Island, Tuesday. Yonhap
The move, however, has triggered strong opposition from airport workers and employees of the airport’s subsidiaries, many of whom will be required to park much further from their workplaces than before.
Union members from IIAC's three subsidiaries held a rally Tuesday, urging the airport operator to withdraw from the parking policy shift.
They claimed that workers from three airport subsidiaries who previously parked in long-term lots or government complex employee parking facilities would lose access to those locations and instead be assigned to parking zones located farthest from their worksites.
“If this policy is implemented, commuting times for resident staff and subsidiary workers could increase by more than an hour per day,” a union member said. “Management made the mistake, but subsidiary employees are being forced to bear the inconvenience.”