Jinju Mayor Jo Gyu-il (left) and Lee Yeong-jae, head of the driver's license division at the Korea Road Traffic Authority, pose for a photo after signing an MOU to establish the Jinju Driver's License Center at Jinju City Hall on Wednesday. [Jinju City]
Jinju Mayor Jo Gyu-il (left) and Lee Yeong-jae, head of the driver's license division at the Korea Road Traffic Authority, pose for a photo after signing an MOU to establish the Jinju Driver's License Center at Jinju City Hall on Wednesday. [Jinju City]

Jinju City is working to establish a new driver's license center to improve access to public services for residents of western South Gyeongsang Province and revitalize the city's older downtown district.

The city signed an MOU with the Korea Road Traffic Authority on Wednesday at Jinju City Hall to move forward with the center. Jinju Mayor Jo Gyu-il and Lee Yeong-jae, head of the authority's driver's license division, attended the signing ceremony.

Until now, residents of Jinju and the wider western South Gyeongsang area have had to travel to the Masan Driver's License Examination Center in Jindong-myeon, Masanhappo-gu, Changwon, to handle matters such as fitness checks, license renewals and written tests. The agreement aims to eliminate that long-distance inconvenience and improve access to administrative services.

Under the MOU, Jinju City will provide the facility space and administrative support needed to set up the center, while the Korea Road Traffic Authority will supply trained staff and systems. The specific opening date and location will be determined through further consultations. The city plans to site the center in an accessible part of the older downtown area to draw foot traffic and boost the local economy.

Once open, the center will be equipped with a safety education room, a written examination hall and a public service counter, allowing residents to handle written tests, traffic safety education, fitness checks and renewals, and license reissuance on-site.

"Once the center opens, residents of western South Gyeongsang Province will see a significant reduction in both the time and money they spend on these services," Mayor Jo said. "We will do our best to work with the authority to get the center up and running as quickly as possible."


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