Paju City, Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education, and Gyeonggi Paju Office of Education are collaborating to operate the Paju-style student-only school shuttle bus ‘Paprika’, the first of its kind in the country, and have confirmed expansion of operations in Geumchon-dong, Munsan-eup, and Paju-eup, and plan to begin operations in December of this year.
In line with the fact that Paju City was recently designated as a leading area for educational development and has laid the foundation for customized educational development that suits the characteristics of the region, ‘Paprika for all students’ has been proposed as a new direction for Paju-style education policy and transportation policy.
Accordingly, Paju City and Gyeonggi-do Paju Office of Education began pilot operation of Paprika in Unjeong New Town on March 4, and have been in constant consultation with related organizations such as Gyeonggi Provincial Council and Paju City Council to expand the operation to the northern part of Paju, including Geumchon and Munsan.
Based on the demand survey conducted in March, the plan is to organize three G routes connecting Unjeong and Geumchon, and two M routes connecting Geumchon-dong, Paju-eup, and Munsan-eup, with a total of seven Paprika buses to minimize the burden of commuting for students and allow them to focus on their studies in a pleasant educational environment.
The transportation operator responsible for the operation of Paprika (Geumchon, Munsan) will be recruited from September 13 to 25, and all administrative procedures will be completed by October. After a trial run for one month in December to improve upon any shortcomings, the official operation will begin in March of next year in time for the new semester.
Eunmi Choi, superintendent of the Paju Office of Education in Gyeonggi Province, said, “Creating an environment for students to commute safely and conveniently is one of our top priorities,” and added, “We will continue to work to improve the inconvenient transportation environment for students in the region.”
Mayor Kim Kyung-il of Paju said, “Paprika will be a pillar that will make Paju a great city to raise children and an educational city that dreams of the future,” and added, “We will do our best until the moment Paprika begins operating in the northern part of Paju with the goal of creating a safe and convenient school environment for students.”
Meanwhile, Paprika (Unjeong) has established itself as a convenient means of transportation for students commuting to and from school, with a total of 79,240 students using it during one semester since its opening on March 4.
Economy Queen Reporter Hongmi Kim / Photo Paju City
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2024-09-19 15:10:24