On the early morning of Dec. 20, at 3 a.m., in front of Itaewon Station in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, about ten people, clad in padded jackets in the -10°C weather, were waiting for a taxi on a snow-covered street. Amidst them pressing the taxi-hailing app on their smartphones with frozen hands, three vehicles with ‘Taxi’ signs stopped. When a woman approached one of the vehicles and said, “Sangam-dong, please,” the man in the driver’s seat responded, “It’s an icy road, so it’ll be 50,000 won.”
The distance from Itaewon to Sangam-dong in Seoul’s Mapo-gu is approximately 15 km, and with the late-night surcharge, it should cost in the 20,000 won range. The man in the driver’s seat got out of the car, saying, “If you pay in cash, I’ll take you right away,” engaging in solicitation. When a drunken man staggered and asked, “How much to Gayang Station?” the man responded, “100,000 won.” After hesitating, the man said, “I’ll do a bank transfer,” and got into the taxi.
That day, the Chosunilbo reported the vehicle number involved in the solicitation incident to the Seoul call center. However, the call center stated that it was a non-commercial, ordinary passenger car not registered for business purposes, known as the so-called ‘Narasi Taxi.’
As the year-end approaches and the demand for taxis increases, illegal taxis are gaining momentum in downtown Seoul. These cars, referred to as Narasi Taxis, were previously prevalent in the central areas of Seoul and adult entertainment districts. They faded from sight in the 2010s due to concentrated crackdowns but have recently resurfaced. While in the past, Narasi Taxis simply utilized regular passenger cars, they now operate by disguising sedans as taxis. An industry official mentioned, “Due to economic difficulties this year, the cost of registering as a taxi operator is high, leading to the emergence of taxis operating illegally.”
Narasi Taxis unreasonably demand exorbitant fares in cash. Although their appearance resembles regular taxis, they lack official registration, meaning they do not have meters, and their license plate numbers or characters may appear suspicious. They are known to frequent areas with high late-night taxi demand, such as Hongdae, Gangnam, Itaewon, Seoul Station, and Gimpo Airport.
Despite being illegal, Narasi Taxis operate in a ‘gray area’ where responsibility is unclear, making enforcement difficult. A Seoul city official said, “The city hall only deals with illegal activities of registered taxis; we don’t have the authority to investigate taxis operating as private vehicles.” A police official emphasized, “Operating a taxi with a private vehicle is a violation of the Passenger Transport Service Act, so administrative measures take precedence,” adding, “Since non-registered taxis don’t issue receipts and deal only in cash, it’s practically challenging to catch them.”
