By Kwon Mee-yoo
Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik’s criticism of giving free subway tickets to the elderly is drawing a public outcry.
People over 65 can ride the subway for free, but the prime minister said it is not proper to give the benefit to all of them, regardless of their wealth. Kim said, “The less benefits for the rich, the better.” He called it “excessive welfare,” implying there will be a cut in the number of seniors who can ride the subway for free.
Giving free transportation to the aged is considered a positive welfare program, but it is also seen as one of the causes of the operators’ increasing deficit.
According to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, the amount of exempted fares for senior citizens reached 337 billion won last year, about a 50 percent jump from 2005.
An increasing number of elderly citizens also burden the free transportation service. When the program was first introduced in the early 1980s, people over 65 took up only 3.9 percent of the population, but they account for 11 percent now and their numbers are expected to reach 38 percent by 2050.
The Korean Senior Citizens Association (KSCA) said the government blames the elderly for reckless management and losses.
“They don’t operate separate trains for the aged and it doesn’t need extra fuel to take elderly passengers for free,” an official of the KSCA said.
Kim Jung-hwan, a Seoul Metro spokesman, said the free rides for senior citizens were part of the national welfare system and the subway operator does not oppose it.
“The subway carriages and stations need improvement. We have to install screen doors and replace old escalators, which cost a great deal,” Kim said. “The amount of free riders’ fares was 138 billion won for just Seoul subway lines 1 to 4. It is a factor of our deficit, but we do not oppose the welfare for the aged. Instead, we hope the government can aid in paying some of the amount.”
Seoul Metro and Seoul Metropolitan Rapid Transit Corporation do not receive government subsidies for seniors’ free rides, as they are regional public enterprises.
In case of intra-city buses, they have offered free travel for senior citizens from the 1980s. However, unlike the subway, operated by state-owned companies, buses are run by private companies and they altered the system to give some 10,000 won transportation allowances per month.
This allowance was abolished when the Basic Old Age Pension System was introduced in 2009.