One Person Dies Every 3 Days in Traffic Accidents in Incheon Last Year... High Pedestrian Fatality Rate

8,698 Cases Reported, 10th Among 17 Special and Metropolitan Cities Nationwide
Pedestrians Account for 43% of Deaths, Higher Than National Average

Last May, at an intersection in front of an apartment complex in Songdo International City, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, a Starex van collided with a Carnival passenger car and then hit a pedestrian. The accident resulted in 2 deaths and 6 injuries.
[Photo by Incheon Fire Headquarters]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] It was revealed that in the Incheon area last year, one person died in a traffic accident every three days. In particular, the proportion of pedestrian traffic fatalities was higher than the national average.

According to the Incheon Headquarters of the Korea Transportation Safety Authority on the 13th, the analysis of traffic accident statistics last year showed that the number of traffic accident fatalities in the Incheon area was 118, an increase of 4 compared to 2018. Nationwide, traffic accident fatalities decreased by 11.43% last year compared to 2018, but Incheon saw an increase of 4.42%.

The number of traffic accidents in Incheon was 8,698, ranking 10th among the 17 metropolitan cities and provinces nationwide, and the fatality rate, which means the number of deaths per 100 traffic accidents, was 1.36, lower than the national average of 1.46.

However, despite large differences in the number of accidents by type, deaths from vehicle-to-vehicle accidents (53 people) and vehicle-to-pedestrian accidents (51 people) occurred at similar levels. In particular, the proportion of pedestrian traffic accident fatalities among total fatalities was 43.22%, higher than the national average of 37.95%.

By time of day, traffic accidents were most frequent between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. with 1,145 cases, but fatalities were highest between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. with 15 deaths, resulting in a fatality rate of 4.87, higher than other time periods.

This is analyzed to be because traffic volume is high and congested during rush hour, leading to many accidents, while in the early morning hours, visibility is poor before sunrise and traffic volume is relatively low, causing higher travel speeds.

By vehicle type, passenger cars (52 deaths) were followed by cargo trucks (34 deaths) in traffic accident fatalities. This is attributed to the regional characteristic of heavy cargo truck traffic, requiring special attention to cargo truck traffic accidents.

Ko Sangcheol, head of the Incheon Headquarters of the Korea Transportation Safety Authority, said, "We have been continuously conducting traffic safety education, joint traffic safety campaigns with related organizations, and safety inspections of commercial vehicles to prevent traffic accidents," and added, "Based on this traffic accident analysis, we will further strengthen region-tailored traffic safety projects."

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