General Society: Society: News: Hankyoreh

A (33), who could not get a train ticket to Dongdaegu before the Lunar New Year holidays, was in trouble while looking for a reservation for a highway bus. There were many buses with a’sold out’ sign, and I was concerned about’distance’ to choose a bus with few seats left. Mr. A said, “The train only allows window seats to be reserved, so I feel relieved. I think that I will stay on the bus with many people for more than four hours. In order to prevent the spread of Corona 19, the ban on gatherings of 5 or more people was extended until the Lunar New Year holiday period, and about 300 high-speed and intercity buses on the 11th, the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday, are expected to move to their hometown with full passengers. Experts urged that if you have to use the bus, you must thoroughly observe the quarantine rules, such as wearing a mask. Looking at the data received from the’National Express Bus Transportation Business Association’ on the 7th, 316 of the express buses running on the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday (139 premiums, 165 honors, 12 general cars) were sold out (as of 5 days). Appeared. The boarding capacity alone reaches about 8,000. The reservation rate for some major routes that are crowded with passengers is also high. On the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday as of the 5th, the reservation rates for the routes’Seoul → Daegu and Dongdaegu’ and’Seoul → Busan and West Busan’ were calculated at 72% and 52%, respectively. As the Lunar New Year holiday approaches, the reservation rate is expected to increase. This is because train tickets, which cut the number of reserved seats in half, sold out quickly, and those who could not find a suitable transportation turned their eyes to the express bus, where there are no restrictions on seat reservations. The’density’ also increased as the highway bus industry reduced the number of buses running on major routes for management reasons. The Korea Railroad Corporation preemptively enforced the’restriction on reservations within 50% of tickets’, which was applied only after the third stage of social distancing. It is only’recommended’ to select a page. An official from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport explained, “As the Railroad Corporation is a public corporation, it voluntarily cooperates with the quarantine measures, but since express bus companies are operated by the private sector, the government cannot force the (window seat allocation).” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends keeping a distance of at least 2 meters from other passengers when boarding public transport such as buses. However, in a sold-out bus, passengers can ride in the seat next to it, so this’distance’ is not easy. CDC recommends △Do not touch items on the bus △Wash your hands before and after boarding the bus △Do not gather at the bus stop, etc. Experts advise that it is best not to take the full bus, but if you must ride, you must strictly follow the quarantine rules. Kim Moran, a professor of preventive medicine at the Graduate School of National Cancer Center, said, “There have been no cases of infection on buses in Korea, but there have been cases of bus infections in foreign countries because passengers do not wear masks.” “It is necessary to minimize contact with others and take measures to allow outside air to enter through outdoor ventilation in the bus.” By Jang Pil-soo, staff reporter [email protected]