Controversy over fiscal burden is growing as the Seoul Metropolitan Government pushes a plan to subsidize bus fares for senior citizens aged 70 and older. The Transportation Committee of the Seoul Metropolitan Council passed the "Seoul Metropolitan City Senior Transportation Cost Support Ordinance" on Monday. The ordinance, proposed June 9 by City Councilor Lee Byung-yoon of the People Power Party, who chairs the council's transportation committee, centers on subsidizing transportation costs for city and community buses for those aged 70 and older. Currently, Seoul provides free subway rides for those aged 65 and older. If this ordinance is finalized, the scope of free rides could be expanded to buses.
For central and local governments, guaranteeing mobility rights for the elderly is an issue worth considering. However, most experts point out that, given the rapid increase in the elderly population, a reexamination of the appropriate age and support method for the free transportation system must come first. In fact, according to Seoul Metro, the subway deficit grew to 826.8 billion won last year, of which free rides for the elderly accounted for 448.8 billion won, more than half. Under these circumstances, adding free bus rides for the elderly will inevitably increase the city's welfare burden further. This is why some point out that the reasonable order would be to first conclude discussions on raising the free-ride age or rationalizing fares for the deficit-stricken Seoul subway, then review whether to apply the policy to buses.
It is also a major problem that the ordinance is being pushed through hastily, in what resembles a speed battle. This ordinance passed the standing committee just six days after it was proposed and is scheduled to be put before the final plenary session of the 11th Seoul Metropolitan Council on June 24. Given that People Power Party councilors currently hold 68 of the 118 total seats, making it the majority party, and that Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon also pledged to support bus costs for the elderly in the June 3 local elections, passage is highly likely. However, it cannot be considered normal for an ordinance that creates the framework for a large welfare policy—one that will involve a budget of more than 100 billion won every year going forward—to be processed in a flash, just 18 days after it was proposed.
Welfare is difficult to reverse once it begins. The more a project involves citizens' tax money, the more closely its policy effects, funding methods, and sustainability must be examined. Since a new Seoul Metropolitan Council will be launched next month, the right approach is to reach social consensus through broader discussion, rather than making hasty decisions at the end of the term.
