1459 Traffic Accident Deaths in the First Half of This Year... Increased Motorcycle and Highway Fatalities

Pedestrian, Elderly, and Child Deaths Decrease
Increase in Some Local Governments Including Gwangju

Number of Traffic Accident Deaths by Type in the First Half of This Year.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The number of traffic accident fatalities in the first half of this year was recorded at 1,459, showing a 10% decrease compared to the same period last year. Fatal accidents involving vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and the elderly decreased, but fatalities involving two-wheeled vehicles and on highways increased compared to the previous year.

The National Police Agency and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced the traffic accident fatality statistics for the period from January to the end of June on the 12th.

By category, pedestrian fatalities were 515, down 15.8% from the previous year, and fatalities among the elderly aged 65 and over were 603, a decrease of 18.3%. Fatalities among children under 13 also decreased by 25% to 12. However, fatalities from drunk driving accidents were 149, showing only a 2.0% decrease compared to last year, while the number of such accidents actually increased by 13.1% during the same period.

Fatalities caused by two-wheeled vehicles such as motorcycles increased by 13.7% to 265 compared to last year. This is believed to be due to the increase in delivery services such as food orders amid social distancing measures caused by the spread of COVID-19. Additionally, the number of fatalities on highways also rose by 11.2% to 99.

By region, Gangwon (-45.2%), Incheon (-41.2%), Chungbuk (-34.6%), Jeju (-17.9%), and Daegu (-13.2%) saw significant decreases, while Gwangju (50.0%), Daejeon (9.1%), Ulsan (7.7%), and Gyeongnam (4.7%) experienced increases in traffic accident fatalities.

The government plans to conduct joint inspections with relevant ministries targeting local governments with poor performance in reducing traffic accident fatalities to encourage strengthening regional traffic safety. In particular, according to the two-wheeled vehicle safety measures established in April this year, efforts will focus on crackdowns on illegal activities involving two-wheeled vehicles in accident-prone areas, expansion of public reporting groups, and distribution of safety equipment. Furthermore, themed crackdowns on highways, focused enforcement of risky behaviors, inspections of transportation companies’ maintenance status, and ongoing traffic safety promotion activities will continue.

The National Police Agency and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport urged, “Please actively participate in eradicating drunk driving, complying with traffic laws, and establishing an advanced traffic culture such as ‘Stop immediately when you see a person.’ We also ask each region to increase interest in traffic safety and make efforts to prevent traffic accidents in the second half of the year.”

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