The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) will completely overhaul how Korea's highway rest areas operate, eliminating the multi-tiered structure that runs from the Korea Expressway Corporation to operators to vendors, and shifting to a system in which a professional public management company contracts directly with vendors. The move aims to resolve the chronic problem of rest areas being "expensive and unappetizing."
MOLIT announced its rest area operation overhaul plan on the 9th. The root cause of high food prices at rest areas has been the multi-tiered structure linking the Korea Expressway Corporation, intermediate operators, and vendors. Vendors have borne fees averaging 33% of sales, and as much as 51% in some cases, and these cost burdens have been passed on directly to higher food prices, ultimately harming the public. In fact, in the 2024 road satisfaction survey, 66.9% of respondents answered that "rest area food is expensive."
In particular, structural problems came to light in which "Doseonghoe," an association of Korea Expressway Corporation retirees, used subsidiaries to monopolize the operation of some rest areas for as long as 40 years while reaping profits. This deepened public distrust of the vested-interest cartel.
MOLIT decided to switch to a system in which a professional "public management company," scheduled to be established early next year, contracts directly with vendors. This year, before the public management company is established, the Korea Expressway Corporation will temporarily take on this role. Through this, the plan is to sharply lower the average rent for vendors from the current 33% level to 8-9% (excluding management fees). Even accounting for management fees, MOLIT projected the cost would fall by more than half compared to the current level.
The criteria for selecting vendors will also be revised. Moving away from a system that favored vendors offering high rents, the criteria will be improved so that vendors offering good food, service, and reasonable prices are selected. Fairness and service quality will be managed through evaluations by an external review committee and annual vendor assessments. Rest areas with high visitor traffic will also operate "youth stores" supporting young entrepreneurs, and additional revenue such as solar power generation on rest area sites will be used to improve services such as heating, cooling, and air quality.
The changes coming to rest areas under this overhaul have also been detailed. To ease the inconvenience of nighttime drivers, convenience stores that previously closed at 10 p.m. will switch to 24-hour operation, and will offer ready-to-eat food such as lunch boxes, gimbap, and cup noodles along with pleasant cooking and dining spaces. Convenience store 1+1 discounts and telecom point accumulation and redemption benefits, which were common at ordinary stores but hard to find at rest areas, will also be expanded.
On the price front, the plan is to provide quality food at prices that are affordable even compared to the market, so that the effect of the rent reduction is returned to consumers. In particular, for coffee, which is in high demand for preventing drowsy driving, budget coffee shops that previously found it difficult to enter due to high rents will now be able to operate, making it possible to enjoy an Americano — currently averaging 4,800 won — for less than 2,000 won. In addition, the plan is to attract professional dining brands and representative local restaurants, transforming rest areas into spaces where visitors can choose according to their tastes.
The revamped operating method will be applied first at eight rest areas nationwide within this year. So that the public can quickly feel the changes even before the public management company is established, a bidding notice will be issued in July for eight rest areas that are newly opening or whose contracts are ending this year (new: Hapcheonho northbound and southbound, Wolchulsan; contracts ending: Yeoju, Gunwi, Jangyu, Daecheon northbound and southbound), with temporary operations beginning in December.
MOLIT will also move to break up the vested-interest cartel surrounding rest areas. When bidding for rest area vendor spaces, current Korea Expressway Corporation employees, employees who retired within three years, and their spouses and immediate family members will be excluded from bidding, and a retiree database will be built to strengthen monitoring. Doseonghoe and its subsidiaries will be barred from participating in rest area business going forward, and MOLIT plans to revise Doseonghoe's articles of association so that the six rest areas currently operated through its subsidiaries are immediately sold by issuing sale notices by September 30. Earlier, following the results of a MOLIT audit on May 7 this year, an investigation is underway into allegations of bidding misconduct by Doseonghoe subsidiaries, and follow-up measures are being pursued, including requesting a tax investigation from the National Tax Service into allegations of tax evasion on members' profits. Hong Ji-sun, Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "We will no longer tolerate structures of vested interests," adding, "Starting with eight rest areas this year, we will make rest areas comfortable spaces where the public can rest without financial burden."
MOLIT plans to finalize the plan to establish the public management company as soon as possible after discussions on the specific establishment and operation methods, and to launch it early next year after institutional improvements. MOLIT Minister Kim Yoon-duk said, "Rest areas should be places where people tired from long-distance driving can rest comfortably, but due to unreasonable structures entrenched over decades, they have had to endure the inconvenience of high prices and disappointing service." He added, "Starting with eight rest areas opening this year, we will boldly break up the unreasonable structure and fill that space only with public benefit, returning rest areas to the arms of the people."
