GroundK has built its own tourism-taxi and city-tour software for local governments and will launch both at the All That Travel expo in July 2024. The aim is a supplier-side digital shift: travelers book in one place, while operators handle dispatch, control, customer service, and settlement through the same channel. As of 2024, more than 40 local governments run a tourism-taxi service, yet most still rely on phone bookings and manual operations.
Why regional tourism transport needs a digital shift
Many regions offer city-tour buses and tourism taxis to welcome visitors. Too often, though, awkward booking and fragmented operations cut those services short or force them to scale back before they find their footing. GroundK is one company that set out to fix the problem head-on.
Founder Jang Dong-won started GroundK in 2016 to deliver IT-based mobility services for the companies and public institutions that need them. From the beginning, the team built software around how customers, transport operators, and drivers actually work day to day, and used that understanding to renew the way the industry runs. That same focus led to its latest products: operating solutions for tourism taxis and city tours, designed specifically for local governments.
The tourism-taxi solution and a supplier-side digital shift
"Easy use is a given. The real point is a supplier-side digital shift." — Jang Dong-won, CEO of GroundK
That is how CEO Jang frames the new tourism-taxi solution. As of 2024, more than 40 local governments operate a tourism taxi, yet foreign travelers still find it hard to use, and bookings and customer service often run over the phone. Operators carry a heavy load — reservations, dispatch, customer response, settlement — leaving little room to manage service quality or respond to rising demand.
GroundK read the friction on both sides and built a solution that improves them at the same time. Domestic and overseas travelers book with ease, while operators handle dispatch, control, and customer service in one place. Integrated booking across outside channels runs on RIDEUS, so reservations and operations sit in a single channel rather than scattered tools. Travelers can also design a free itinerary instead of following a fixed course, moving past the limits of public transit. In short, one channel improves the experience for travelers and operators together and lifts the quality of the tourism service itself.
The city-tour solution and regional tourism insight
"We need to uncover regional tourism insight through data." — Jang Dong-won, CEO of GroundK
GroundK is also introducing a solution for booking, operating, and managing city-tour buses. City tours run in many regions too, but the IT backbone for booking and operations is thin. The city-tour solution pairs traveler-facing features — booking, payment, ticket validation — with operator tools such as route setup and dispatch. This ticketing flow, where booking, validation, and settlement connect end to end, draws directly on the strengths of T-RiseUp TMS.
Jang describes both products as "solutions that uncover the tourism insight of each region." He added that "analyzing the demographic profile and travel data of visitors can reveal regional tourism trends." In his view, the two solutions will meet traveler needs, widen access to promising tourism assets, and help revitalize local economies while countering population decline.
Launch at All That Travel and a no-cost pilot offer
GroundK plans to launch both solutions at the All That Travel expo in July 2024. The team has finished the design of a tourism-transport themed booth and is preparing a space where visitors can use the solutions for themselves.
"We also offer a no-cost pilot so local governments do not feel the burden of going digital. We hope tourism-transport officials from many regions will visit." — Choi Jong-hoon, Marketing Lead at GroundK
Choi Jong-hoon, who leads marketing for the event, said the company is offering a no-cost pilot so local governments can evaluate the solutions without commitment, and voiced his hope that tourism-transport officials from many regions will stop by.
Beyond tourism transport, into MICE mobility
This year GroundK joined the 2024 World Table Tennis Championships in Busan and the 2024 Korea-Africa Summit as a transport service provider, widening its reach in the MICE industry. Alongside its mobility technology work, the company has earned recognition as a tourism growth-venture, a Busan tourism star company, and a Tourism Plus Tech company — growing into a converged firm that pairs strong service capability with technology.