'K-pass' begins operation, offering transport discounts nationwide

Commuters in Korea are now able to use public transportation at discounted fares with the official launch of the K-pass on Wednesday.

Commuters pass through subway turnstiles at the platform of Seoul Station in central Seoul on Wednesday. The K-pass, a public transportation discount card that provides partial reimbursement of public transportation expenses for 15 to 60 rides, was officially launched the same day. [YONHAP]

Commuters in Korea are now able to use public transportation at discounted fares with the official launch of the K-pass on Wednesday.

The K-pass, a public transportation fare discount card rolled out by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, offers discounts of up to 53 percent. Foreign residents who have a residence card are also eligible for the scheme.

The new transit pass differs from Seoul’s prepaid Climate Card as it provides partial reimbursement of public transportation expenses in cash or mileage in the following month.

The K-pass covers city buses, subways, buses traveling routes connecting Seoul to its suburbs and the GTX. High-speed trains like the KTX and SRT and express buses are excluded.

Discount amounts are categorized based on age and income criteria.

Regular adults are eligible for a 20 percent refund, individuals aged from 19 to 34 qualify for a 30 percent discount and those in the low-income bracket can receive a 53 percent discount. For instance, a monthly expenditure of 70,000 won ($52) on public transportation could lead to a 14,000 won refund for adults, 21,000 won for younger people and 37,000 won for low-income individuals.

To qualify for these discounts, users need to utilize public transportation at least 15 times a month, with the program extending benefits for a maximum of 60 times. In the first month of use, users will still be able to receive reimbursements if they take public transportation fewer than 15 times.

The new transportation scheme is available for use almost nationwide except in 40 regions, such as South Jeolla’s Yeonggwang County and Gangwon’s Pyeongchang County and Sokcho.

The Land Ministry said it will consistently engage in talks with the 40 localities to join the scheme.

The K-pass can be issued in either debit or credit cards through 10 card companies: KB Kookmin, Woori, Hana, Hyundai, Shinhan, Samsung, BC, NH Nonghyup, DGB U-Pay and EZL. Those who are issued with the card should register the card number on the K-pass mobile application or the official website korea-pass.krto receive reimbursements.

Existing holders of the "Affordable Transportation Card," a precursor to the K-pass that reimbursed users based on distance, can simply apply for a conversion to the K-pass through the app or the website by June 30.

Those issued with debit cards will be reimbursed to the bank account registered while those with credit cards will have their mileage subtracted from the subsequent month’s bill.

According to the Land Ministry, some 250,000 new users applied for the pass as of Tuesday, just a week after applications for the card issuance were open. Around 820,000 users of the Affordable Transportation Card have already converted their cards to K-pass.

Residents of Gyeonggi and Incheon will receive additional benefits from an extended version of the K-pass. The Gyeonggi Pass and Incheon’s I-pass both additionally provide reimbursement for transportation rides exceeding 60 times and offer a 30 percent discount to young commuters aged 19 to 39.

The I-pass additionally offers reimbursement to individuals aged 65 or older, up to 30 percent.

Residents of Gyeonggi and Incheon will automatically receive the benefits of these passes by registering for the K-pass with their addresses.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]