The Seoul city said Thursday it will launch a late-night bus sharing service next month for a test run as part of efforts to enhance public convenience when public transportation is not available at night.

The operator of Callbus Lab, a ride-sharing service, and an association of local taxi drivers reached an agreement to begin the test run in mid-April for two months, with the buses set to run in southern Seoul from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m.

The area is notorious for taxi drivers who refuse to take customers short distances.

"We will first conduct a test run with 20 buses," an official from the association said. "We need some hundreds to operate the service all over Seoul."

After a strong opposition from the taxi industry, which said the app would drive them out of business, the two made a compromise by granting the taxi companies the right to run the buses. 

The Seoul Metropolitan Government is planning to alter the buses' operating hours and routes after the test run period.

It said thorough examination is needed as the service can have a direct impact on the city's public transportation system and the life of Seoul citizens. (Yonhap)