The news report revealing the massive losses for a project that was initially touted as a "huge success" has sparked outrage and frustration among Koreans, especially concerning the misuse of taxpayer money and questionable decision-making by local authorities.
Seoul's ambitious Hangang Bus project, once hyped with "signs of a huge success" (or **daebak jojim** as Koreans would say), is now making headlines for all the wrong reasons. A recent report reveals the project has racked up a staggering 16.1 billion KRW (approx. $11.7 million USD) in cumulative losses, putting it in a state of capital erosion. This financial disaster has ignited a firestorm of criticism online, with many questioning how such an unviable project ever got approved in the first place. Commuters often prefer alternatives like running or using **Ttareungi**, Seoul's popular public bike-sharing system, making the bus's utility questionable. The public is furious, seeing this as another example of taxpayer money being squandered on poorly planned government initiatives.
🇰🇷 KOREAN REACTIONS 10
Seriously, those who squander tax money should be thoroughly investigated. There are tax-eating parasites everywhere, but these domestic bastards mess things up like this and then just say, "I ate the tax money, so I'm good~ Do it according to the contract, according to the law," patting their bellies. They need to see their whole family out on the streets to realize there's a limit to how much you can take. Every time you investigate one, some other high-and-mighty bastard is behind them. So they just try to make a quick buck. ㅗㅗ
It clearly looked like it had no business viability, so how did it even get approved??
They should be squandering tens of trillions (KRW) like the Saemangeum project or creating 10 Seoul National Universities, but is a few tens of billions enough? (Sarcasm comparing the scale of alleged corruption to other large, often criticized, government projects like the Saemangeum reclamation or the prestige of Seoul National University)
If those at the top push for it, the person in charge probably wonders when this damn local autonomy system will be abolished.
Lmaooo, you know how it is, right? lol
Taxes are gently melting away. Someone must be making money, for sure.
They should just rebrand it as a tourist bus now.
When it first launched last year, it was packed, which worried me. But for commutes, it doesn't even run during morning rush hour, and for evening commutes, running or Ttareungi (Seoul's public bikes) are the real issues, so it wasn't as bad as I feared. On weekends, just avoid the Hangang Bus area.
Well... it must have been done with Seoul's money. As a 'Jibang-chung' (a somewhat derogatory or self-deprecating term for someone from outside Seoul), I'll just observe.
Seoul is truly fascinating/strange.