A taxi platform built for foreign visitors has launched in Seoul, where a record 11.56 million overseas tourists arrived in the first eight months of this year.
Seoul Smart, the operator of the Seoul city government's International Taxi service for foreign visitors, said on the 12th that it had launched an integrated passenger platform exclusively for foreign users.
The platform combines booking, real-time dispatch, payment and trip history into a single service. Travelers can reserve a ride before entering the country or hail a taxi immediately after arriving in Korea.
The service accepts credit cards issued overseas. Foreign tourists can register the card they use at home and pay fares directly, without going through complicated separate procedures.
Seoul Smart plans to expand tie-ups with airports, hotels, overseas online travel agencies and other major tourism platforms. The company will also revamp training and customer service for its existing International Taxi drivers, who can assist passengers in English, Chinese and Japanese.
"The International Taxi is the starting point of the first tourism service foreign visitors experience in Korea," said Kim Dae-hwan, head of division at Seoul Smart. "We will expand services linking major domestic tourist hubs and grow this into a leading tourism mobility platform."