In South Korea seniors and free subway travel equals quick delivery

Feb 4, 2010, 14:46 GMT

Seoul - The words 'silver' and 'quick service' don't sound like a good combination, but it works in South Korea where silver-haired retirees are hired by delivery companies to hand-deliver packages to homes and offices.

There are a few magic numbers in South Korean civic life: you can drink and get a driving licence at 18, vote at 19, and become a free subway passenger at 65.

This free subway-riding status for seniors has created a win-win deal between cost-saving business owners and job-seeking seniors as well as customers who want safe and timely delivery.

In the capital Seoul, there is a booming business called the 'quick service' - a kind of express delivery service that hand-delivers packages or documents to homes or offices, usually within three or four hours of picking them up.

Most of the quick services use scooter riders to make their way through the traffic in gridlocked Seoul. However, this method tends to be risky, expensive and time-consuming. The price usually ranges from 15,000 won (13 dollars) to 40,000 won, depending on the distance.

Therefore, some delivery services have hired seniors as a safe and cost-saving alternative to scooter riders.

First of all, seniors aged 65 or more are free passengers on all of the metro-subway routes that extend as far as most of the suburb cities of Suwon or Incheon. Therefore, transportation costs nothing if seniors carry the packages, allowing the delivery company to offer a generous discount. The so-called 'silver quick service' is usually 40 per cent cheaper than the scooter alternative.

Also, there is no better way to get around Seoul than the hop-on, hop-off subway-metro in the city and its metropolitan areas. The only problem is that the subway is very crowded during rush hour.

The idea of senior express men started from a businessman who saw over-65s passing time in a park. 'When I found quite a lot of seniors idling off at a park, it suddenly dawned on me why not hire them and start a quick service business,' recalled Bae Gi-Geun who employs about 30 seniors in his quick delivery service.

His business, started in 2006, now pulls in impressive revenues, all thanks to the general healthiness of retired South Koreans and their ability to travel the subway for free.