Expected Surge in Traffic Volume During May Holidays... "Caution Needed for Children's Traffic Accidents"

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Hyung-gil] During the May holidays, known as the "Month of Family," automobile traffic, which had decreased due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), is expected to return to normal levels, raising concerns about the need to be cautious of traffic accidents.

In particular, child traffic accidents frequently occur from May through October during spring and autumn vacation seasons, requiring special attention.

According to the Korea Insurance Development Institute on the 28th, the number of child traffic accident victims last year was 112,558, an increase of 5.5% compared to the previous year.

Among child victims, there were many lower-grade elementary school students in grades 1 and 2, as well as fatalities. This is understood to be due to the need for younger children to adapt to new commuting environments and their relatively weaker ability to respond to situations.

Additionally, child victims mostly occur between May and October, when outdoor activities are frequent, with a high proportion during the vacation month of August. While overall traffic accident victims were more frequent in October (9.1%) and November (9.0%), child victims were more common in August (10.2%), October (9.3%), and May (9.2%).

Children had a higher proportion of crosswalk violation accidents compared to adults. Among causes of child traffic accidents, signal violations (36.1%) and crosswalk violations (20.6%) were the most common.

The seatbelt usage rate among child victims riding in vehicles was 73.0% last year, similar to the previous year (73.1%), but still lower than the overall victim rate across all age groups (83.3%).

It is advised to always check that children are wearing seatbelts when riding in vehicles, and children under the age of six must use child restraint devices (car seats) before fastening seatbelts.

Furthermore, under the amended Road Traffic Act and Special Act (known as the Min-sik Act), which took effect on March 25, drivers who violate child protection duties in school zones will face aggravated penalties.

Since an average of 496 child victims occur annually within school zones, it is necessary to strictly observe speed limits and exercise special caution to prevent accidents within protected areas.

Jang Jae-il, head of the Automobile Insurance Statistics Team at the Korea Insurance Research Institute, stated, "Continuous attention and efforts from policy authorities and insurance industry workers are required to create an environment where precious children, who will lead the country's future, can grow up safely."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.