Intensive Management of National Roads Around Villages with Frequent Traffic Accidents... Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Expands Protection Zones

Conceptual Diagram of Village Resident Protection Zone Installation (Photo by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Jiwon] Road sections adjacent to villages where eight or more traffic accidents or three or more fatal accidents have occurred in the past three years will be managed as candidates for the 'Village Resident Protection Zone Establishment Project' going forward.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 5th that it had promulgated guidelines for the installation and management of village resident protection zones containing these details on the 28th of last month.

The Village Resident Protection Zone Establishment Project aims to prevent pedestrian traffic accidents frequently occurring on national roads around villages by designating certain protection zones and creating a safe walking environment through measures such as anti-skid pavement and installation of speed enforcement cameras.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has been promoting the first phase of the village resident protection zone project from March last year to December this year. According to the Korea Transport Institute, the pilot project conducted by the government from 2015 to 2018 resulted in a 34.1% reduction in traffic accident casualties within the protection zones.

According to the newly promulgated management guidelines, road sections adjacent to villages where eight or more traffic accidents have occurred within 1 km in the past three years, or where three or more fatal accidents have occurred, are designated as project candidate sites.

Additionally, to enable smooth project implementation by executing agencies, step-by-step procedures from 'target section selection → design → construction → management' have been established. Annual management plans are also formulated to maintain the visibility and reflectivity performance of safety facilities.

Recommended installation facilities considering traffic characteristics, pedestrian environment, and budget scale of the executing agency for the project sections are also presented. Regardless of the project executing entity, standardized safety facilities such as traffic safety signs, road surface markings, and unmanned traffic enforcement equipment are regulated in terms of specifications, minimum performance, and installation intervals.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has implemented the village resident protection zone project in a total of 246 sections across 89 cities and counties nationwide, including pilot projects and the first phase basic plan. From next year to 2023, the second phase of the village resident protection zone project will be promoted.

Joo Hyunjong, Director of the Road Bureau at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "We plan to actively promote traffic safety projects that citizens can tangibly feel the results of, such as the village resident protection zone improvement project."

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