Seoul bus drivers go on strike as city scrambles to avoid commuter chaos

An empty bus stop near Seoul Station in downtown Seoul on Thursday morning. Intracity bus drivers went on strike the same day after failing to reach an agreement with management on wage hikes. [YONHAP]

 
Seoul’s bus labor union went on strike Thursday after failing to reach an agreement on wage hikes with management.
 
The walkout comes roughly 12 years after bus drivers in the capital went on a partial strike in 2012. 
 
 
The strike halts the operation of 7,210 intracity buses, or 97.6 percent of the total number of buses in the capital.

 
Last-minute negotiations between the Seoul Bus Labor Union and management began around 3 p.m. Wednesday and ended after around 11 hours, following a failure to accept the union’s demand for a 12.7 percent increase in hourly wages.  
 
The strike began at 4 a.m. Thursday.  
 
The city government announced Thursday morning that it would immediately implement emergency plans to minimize commuter chaos in response to the strike. Subways will add 202 trains daily from Thursday and extend their hours until 2 a.m.
 
To manage overcrowding, the city government will deploy personnel to 17 major stations, including Jamsil Station and Seoul Station. Free shuttle buses will also operate from major subway stations across the capital’s 25 districts.
 

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]