By Kang Shin-who
Staff Reporter
The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to establish a group of foreigners to come up with plans to provide better bus services for non-native residents and travelers ahead of the G-20 Summit, which will take place on Nov. 11 and 12.
According to the city, the Seoul Global Center and foreign embassies will recommend about 20 people in the city.
They will pretend to be regular passengers in order to test bus drivers and check whether the English broadcast service works well along with any other troubles foreigners might have with the current system.
They will evaluate the quality of the bus service, on routes that operate in areas where many foreign residents live, such as Ichon, Itaewon, Hannam, Seorae and Yeonnam. The city traffic authorities will collect suggestions and opinions to settle problems experienced by foreigners.
The city is also considering providing other foreign language broadcasts on buses besides English in some areas. For example, a Chinese service will be offered in Yeonnam and French in Seorae. Currently, Ichon has a Japanese language service for bus passengers.