Korea to cover up to 70% of losses on the Jeju–Chuja–Wando ferry

The Herald Business reported on 16 October 2026 that the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries has added the Jeju–Chuja–Wando route to the routes eligible for its second-half 2026 coastal passenger route stabilization support program. The paper said the route had been at risk of suspension because of mounting deficits. The ministry plans to cover up to 70% of the operating deficit, within the available budget.

Songlim Haewoon's vessel Songlim Blue Ocean has served the route since May 2024, carrying passengers, vehicles and daily necessities between Jeju, Chuja Island and Wando. The service has posted operating losses every year since it began, and has recorded deficits for two consecutive years.

The route supplies Chuja Island with goods that depend on heavier vehicles. The Santa Monica, another passenger vessel calling at the island, can carry vehicles weighing up to one ton. Songlim Blue Ocean can carry vehicles of up to 25 tons.

The support programme began in 2018 so island residents can make same-day trips to the mainland and so loss-making routes are not shut. It subsidises a portion of the operating deficits of private ferry operators. The ministry currently supports three routes for one-day connectivity and 10 loss-making routes. This addition followed applications from 18 to 28 August, reviewed by a route selection committee of academics, research institute representatives and field experts.

Kim Hye-jeong, director general of the ministry's maritime and logistics bureau, said people should be able to travel easily and receive the supplies they need wherever they live, and that the ministry will support loss-making routes so the sea lanes between islands and the mainland keep running.