The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) said on the 9th it will establish a highway rest area specialist public management company next year to contract directly with tenant businesses. Currently, the Korea Expressway Corporation (KEC) contracts with tenant businesses through an intermediary rest area operator. After President Lee Jae-myung noted during a MOLIT briefing in Dec. last year, "Why are rest areas so expensive when the food isn't good?" and "It turned out that as it passed through several stages, half was skimmed off as rent and fees along the way," the government drew up follow-up measures.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) released a "plan to overhaul highway rest area operations." At a briefing that day, Hong Ji-seon, the second vice minister at MOLIT, said, "Behind the long-standing criticism that rest area food is expensive, choices are limited, and service is unsatisfactory was a multi-stage structure linking KEC, operators, and tenant businesses," adding, "We will fundamentally change the rest area operating structure."
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) plans to establish a specialist public management company for rest areas next year. It intends to create a new company to take over the duties previously handled by the Korea Expressway Corporation (KEC). A MOLIT official said, "We are reviewing ways to establish a public management company, such as a government-funded company or a KEC subsidiary." MOLIT projected that if this company contracts directly with tenant businesses without an intermediary operator, the rent paid by tenant businesses will fall from an average of 33% of sales to about 8%–9% on average.
It also said it will expand 24-hour operation at rest area convenience stores and sell ready-to-eat items such as boxed meals and cup noodles. It added it will offer 1+1 discounts and point accrual and redemption benefits. In addition, it said it will bring in shops that price coffee at 2,000 won or less.
However, for eight rest areas that will be newly established or where contracts with existing operators will end before the specialist public management company is set up, KEC will temporarily contract directly with tenant businesses. The applicable rest areas are the newly established Hapcheonho inbound and outbound, and three at Wolchulsan, as well as Yeoju, Gunwi, Jangyu, and Daecheon inbound and outbound—five where existing operator contracts end. A MOLIT official said, "In return for lowering rent, we are preparing detailed qualitative and quantitative evaluation items so that companies with superior food prices, taste, and service can move in."
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) said it will terminate contracts to ensure early withdrawal from six rest areas operated by Doseonghoe, an association of KEC retirees, and its subsidiaries. It also plans to bar them from participating in the rest area business going forward. In audit findings on Doseonghoe released in May, MOLIT said, "KEC granted preferential treatment by awarding, through private contracts, intermediary rest area operations to companies created by Doseonghoe." In addition, current and former KEC employees and their spouses and immediate family members will be excluded from bidding for rest areas. It also plans to require the immediate sale of the six rest areas currently in operation.