At the training centre for KD Transport Group, South Kore a’s largest bus operator, in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, boyish-looking men stood out among about 100 drivers gathered for safety training on January 20. According to the company, 47 of the 460 drivers at its Pangyo branch are in their 20s or 30s, accounting for roughly 10 per cent of the workforce. “It is unusual to see such a sharp increase in young applicants.”AdvertisementBus driving, once a job avoided by young workers, is becoming a magnet for South Koreans in their 20s and 30s. Analysts attribute this shift to the introduction of the semipublic bus system, a model in which local governments cover operating deficits with tax revenue, coupled with a tough job market. Since the early 2000s, major metropolitan areas like Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province have adopted a semipublic system, significantly boosting wages and job security.