Cashless public transit pushes foreign business travelers to taxis

About 80 percent of transportation costs paid by foreign business travelers was spent on taxis last year, a report showed Sunday. This was because international credit and debit cards are not accepted as valid payment methods for Korea’s public transportation. According to a report by Visa, a global credit card and payment firm, about half of the offline payments made by foreign business travelers in Korea occurred in Seoul last year. In the transportation sector, eight out of 10 foreign business travelers rode taxis. Their per-person spending on transportation averaged $110 (148,000 won). Travelers from the U.S. spent the most, followed by Japan and India. Spending by visitors from these three countries combined accounted for half of all international credit card use, followed by significant spending by travelers from Ireland, Vietnam, China and Australia. Over half of all in-person credit card use by foreign visitors was in Seoul, followed by Suwon, Incheon and Seongnam in Gyeonggi Province, and Busan. Lodging and accommodation spending for visitors from these seven countries averagedWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times