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SRT Crackdown on Fare Evasion Meets Defiance, Passengers Show Hostility
🇰🇷 South Korea /Crime & Justice

SRT Crackdown on Fare Evasion Meets Defiance, Passengers Show Hostility

From Dong-A Ilbo · () Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • SRT, a South Korean high-speed rail operator, is intensifying efforts to crack down on fare evasion.
  • Passengers caught attempting to ride without tickets have shown defiant attitudes, presenting fake tickets or hiding in restrooms.
  • In just three days, 109 cases of fare evasion were recorded, leading SRT to expand its inspection zones and increase enforcement.

South Korea's high-speed rail operator, SRT, is facing defiance from passengers caught attempting to ride without tickets. The company recently launched a concentrated crackdown on fare evasion, but many caught in the act have responded with hostility and a lack of remorse.

Are you saying I committed a crime?

— Unidentified PassengerA passenger's defiant reaction when informed their captured ticket was invalid and payment was required.

One passenger, when told a captured ticket was invalid, became enraged, shouting, "Are you saying I committed a crime?" Despite warnings of being handed over to railway police, the passenger refused to pay. Another individual, caught with a returned ticket, questioned the inspection, asking, "I'm not a criminal, what are you doing? What crime did I commit?" This passenger later claimed they thought a photo of a returned ticket would be accepted.

I'm not a criminal, what are you doing? What crime did I commit?

— Unidentified PassengerA passenger's angry response when caught attempting to use a returned ticket.

Other evasion tactics included hiding in restrooms until the final stop and presenting tickets for different routes. In just three days, SRT's enforcement team documented 109 instances of fare evasion. In response, SRT is expanding its special inspection zones to cover the entire Suwon-Osong route, including previously less-monitored sections. The company aims to eradicate fare evasion and promote a culture of proper ticketing.

I thought a photo of a returned ticket would be accepted.

— Unidentified PassengerThe passenger's justification after being caught with a returned ticket.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Dong-A Ilbo in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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