Vehicles are parked in the long-term parking area at Incheon Airport's Terminal 2. (Newsis) Incheon International Airport Corp. will overhaul its employee parking permit system, cutting staff passes and converting hundreds of spaces to passenger use following a government audit into system misuse, the operator said Tuesday.The changes, which take effect July 1, stem from a special audit by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in May that found some airport workers had used long-term parking permits for personal purposes and occupied spaces intended for passengers.The airport had issued 31,265 employee parking permits, both paid and complimentary, equal to 84.5 percent of its 36,971 parking spaces, while average daily usage amounted to 5,134 vehicles, or 13.8 percent of capacity."Passengers are struggling to find parking, yet some employees have misused the system for personal convenience," Land Minister Kim Yoon-deok said after releasing the audit findings. "The reforms must be implemented rigorously.”The airport plans to cut total passes by at least half, limiting them to employees whose jobs require vehicle access. Its own workforce will see the steepest reduction, from 3,500 permits to roughly 400, an 88 percent cut. More than 500 spaces, particularly in high-demand short-term lots near the terminals, are expected to be reassigned for passenger use, IIAC noted.To keep the airport running around the clock, overnight workers in aircraft maintenance, security screening and other essential roles will retain priority access to terminal parking, while two new shuttle routes will connect long-term lots with Terminals 1 and 2 and cut wait times by more than half.The airport operator will impose stricter penalties on employees who misuse parking privileges. Repeat violations will carry suspensions of up to one year, and a fourth offense will result in a lifetime ban."We will monitor the new measures over the next three months and make additional adjustments as needed," IIAC said. "We are also reviewing parking fees for resident workers and plan to revamp valet services in the second half of the year to improve the overall experience for passengers."