Goyang City in Gyeonggi Province has directly challenged the budget-sharing structure of the provincial bus public management system. With municipal costs estimated to reach 84 billion won annually when the system takes full effect next year, the city officially requested that the provincial funding share be raised from the current 30% to at least 50%.
According to Goyang City on the 26th, Mayor Lee Dong-hwan submitted this proposal as an agenda item at the 10th regular meeting of the Gyeonggi Province Mayors and County Heads Council held at Gimpo Media Art Center the previous day. Mayor Lee conveyed his position that "it is unreasonable to burden municipalities with 70% of costs for a project led by Gyeonggi Province."
The city also proposed measures to improve service quality alongside fiscal relief. Noting that public satisfaction remains low despite massive budget allocations, the city recommended introducing a "continuous service evaluation and penalty point system" for discourtesy and reckless driving. The aim is to ensure transport operators bear responsibility commensurate with the financial support they receive.
Mayor Lee also raised concerns about fiscal autonomy for local governments beyond bus administration. He pointed out that municipal cost-sharing ratios reach 50-90% in areas such as education cooperation projects and home-based long-term care benefits for the elderly, calling for expanded contributions from responsible agencies. On Yangju City's proposal regarding private processing of household waste, he led a modified resolution by presenting a supplementary opinion that expanded national funding should come first. For Gapyeong County's proposal to ease road standards for mountain land conversion permits, he suggested reviewing exceptions limited to eup and myeon areas as an alternative.
"Imposing excessive burdens on municipalities for services that are distinctly metropolitan in nature, such as bus administration, contradicts the purpose of local autonomy," Mayor Lee said. "I will communicate closely with Gyeonggi Province and other local governments to prevent the waste of Goyang citizens' tax money, and I will assertively advance the city's position on matters directly affecting citizens' interests."