The city of Paju in Gyeonggi Province said the number of teenagers using "Pafriends," a youth transportation subsidy program, reached 1,831 in the first half of this year.
Paju said on the 5th that it will pay 14.68 million won in transportation refunds this month, in the form of local currency, to 524 teenagers eligible for the Q2 settlement under Pafriends.
Pafriends is a youth transportation welfare policy operated by Paju, separate from Gyeonggi Province's support programs. It provides up to 240,000 won in additional support annually to teenagers who use village buses. Eligible recipients are teenagers aged 13 to 18 with resident registration in Paju, and middle and high school students residing in Paju are also included regardless of age.
Any teenager who meets the eligibility requirements can apply, with no income criteria.
The scope of support covers both regular village buses and "Paprika," a student-only commuter bus. A total of 17 Paprika buses operate on the Unjeong-dong, Geumchon-dong and Munsan-eup routes. The system uses commuter buses to accommodate school transportation demand in areas where public transit routes are not dense, and adds fare refunds on top of that.
The city said it plans to strengthen transportation welfare and address transportation blind spots through the two-pronged support. Refunds cover not only travel for commuting purposes but also daily travel such as trips to private academies and for cultural and athletic activities.
Park Han-soo, head of Paju's Bus Policy Division, said, "The program is being operated stably amid the interest of teenagers and parents," adding, "We will continue to expand support so that more teenagers can feel the benefits, by closely analyzing usage trends going forward."
