POPULAR PUBLIC BICYCLES TOUGH TO MANAGE

[Anchor Lead]

Public bicycles provided by the Seoul Metropolitan Government are hugely popular. They are affordable, costing just one thousand won for whole day, as well being easily accessible. But this all comes at a price of 10 billion won in deficit and harsh working conditions.

[Pkg]

Bicycles clustered in one area are loaded onto a truck and distributed to other stations one by one. Then the worker roams the streets to find abandoned bikes.

[Soundbite] "GPS says it's somewhere here."

He also checks and fixes them. Those that need more work are collected and transported separately.

[Soundbite] "It needs to be fixed. It sinks. I have to take it to the warehouse."

The worker traveled 26 km in the morning alone to find ten abandoned bicycles, replace hand sanitizers and discard waste.

[Soundbite] Kim Ui-jun(Seoul Metropolitan Gov‘t) : "I perform multiple tasks. I transport bicycles, remove trash and replace hand sanitizers."

One in every three Seoul residents uses public bicycles. With a daily rent of just one thousand won, public bicycles enjoy enormous popularity. Every year thousands of new bikes are provided. However, the number of workers in charge of them remains unchanged. Their working conditions keep deteriorating. Two years ago, workers in charge of public bikes started a legal battle to demand a guarantee of living wages.

[Soundbite] Lee Chung-hyo(Seoul Facilities Corporation) : "The number of staff workers should be increased in line with the number of bicycles. Just adding one or two more workers compared to last year is not enough."

With the popularity of public bikes rising, it costs more to maintain them. Last year the deficit surpassed 10 billion won. Although the government plans to run advertisements, they are expected to bring just 1.3 billion won in profits over two years. Civic groups say more funding is needed for bicycles intended for public use.

[Soundbite] Yoon Myung(Consumers Korea) : "The Seoul City government should provide more funding for this public service that benefits Seoul residents."

The Seoul Metropolitan Government views public bicycles as a transportation means and a kind of welfare for the public, and is considering various ways to reduce operational costs while improving working conditions.