With the high oil price situation continuing due to the Middle East crisis, the government said on the 24th that it will implement the "odd-even vehicle restrictions by last digit" starting at 12 a.m. on the 25th. The system restricts driving by day of the week based on the last number on a license plate. On Monday, vehicles with last digits 1 and 6 are not allowed to operate. Tuesday is 2 and 7, Wednesday 3 and 8, Thursday 4 and 9, and Friday 5 and 0. The government said, "The public institutional sector must participate, and the private sector should join voluntarily."
Minister Kim Sung-hwan of the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment reported a "response plan for energy saving related to the Middle East crisis" to the Cabinet meeting that morning. After introducing a "maximum oil price system" on the 13th to control supply prices, the government decided this time to implement the odd-even restrictions to reduce demand.
The Minister said, "The public institutional sector will be required to follow the odd-even system for passenger cars." Currently, public institutions located in cities and counties with populations of 500,000 or more are following the system. Now, public institutions located in cities and counties with populations under 500,000 will also be required to implement it. However, electric and hydrogen vehicles, and vehicles carrying people with disabilities, pregnant women, and preschool children are excluded from the system.
The Minister said, "The private sector will first participate voluntarily, but if the resource security crisis alert related to crude oil is raised from caution to alert, we are considering making it mandatory."
The odd-even vehicle system is a measure under the Energy Use Rationalization Act. Articles 7 and 8 of the Energy Use Rationalization Act allow the climate minister and the trade minister to order restrictions on the use of energy-using equipment to stabilize supply and demand if they determine that "a serious disruption to energy supply and demand has occurred or is likely to occur" due to changes in domestic and international energy conditions. Vehicles are included among energy-using equipment.
However, it is uncertain how much energy can be saved through the odd-even system for vehicles in the public institutional sector. Even if public institutions do not comply, the only penalty is essentially being unable to park in affiliated parking lots. Also, if a local government head determines that public transportation is insufficient and the system is difficult to apply, it may choose not to apply it.
For the private sector, the government decided not to mandate the odd-even system but to encourage voluntary participation. During the oil shocks of the 1970s, the government completely banned operation of luxury passenger cars with eight or more cylinders and passenger car operation on public holidays, except for ambulances, reporting vehicles, and foreigner-owned cars. Later, in the year after the Gulf War in 1990, it implemented a 10-day rotation system for about two months.