Taxi fares in Seoul are likely to go up by 10 percent in 2009, while bus and subway rates will be held steady, the Korea Times reported on Monday.
According to the daily newspaper, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said in an interview Sunday that the city is considering raising the fare.
Taxi operators demanded a 35 to 40 percent rise, while the city proposed 10 percent. Currently, the base rate for two kilometers is 1,900 won, a 17.5 percent rise from June 2005, the Korea Times said.
The fare has not increased since then.
"We have not decided how much to raise it. But a large increase, as taxi operators demand, will see citizens not use taxis," Oh said, indicating a small rise was on the horizon.
For rates of bus and subways, Oh said they are "basic public" transportation systems and the city will not increase the fares next year because it will aggravate citizens' financial difficulties. The base rate for buses and subways already rose in April 2007 to 1,000 won (0.78 U.S. dollar) from 900 won (0.70 U.S. dollar) when paying in cash.
Oh said water, gas and other public services fees will also remain the same.
The mayor said the city has allotted more to welfare for next year than this year, 3.7 trillion won (2.89 billion U.S. dollars) or 22.7 percent of its total budget. The money will be spent on helping children, women, the elderly, the disabled and the poor, he added.
Source: Xinhua
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