Assemblyman Kim Hoe-jae, 46.4% of Highway Guardrails Fail to Meet Standards

Priority Measures Needed for Aging Bridges and Special Sections at Risk of Major Damage

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Hyung-kwon] Nearly half of the highway guardrails, which prevent cars from rolling off the road or causing major accidents even if they stray from their lanes, have been found to fall short of standards.

According to the status of guardrail installations submitted by the Korea Expressway Corporation to Kim Hoe-jae, a member of the National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea (Yeosu-eul, Jeonnam), out of a total of 4,471 km of guardrails, 2,076 km, or 46.4%, were below standard.

By route, the sections falling short of standards were 376 km on the Seohaean Line, 318 km on the Gyeongbu Line, 305 km on the Jungang Line, 213 km on the Jungbu Line, 161 km on the Honam Line, and 157 km on the Jungbu Naeryuk Line.

In response, the Korea Expressway Corporation stated, "All substandard guardrails were installed before 2007, and due to the revision of related guidelines (Road Safety Facility Installation and Management Guidelines) in 2012, they no longer meet current standards," adding, "We are prioritizing improvements and upgrading them annually to enhance customer safety."

However, looking at this year’s improvement plan by the Korea Expressway Corporation, with a budget of 7 billion KRW, the plan is to replace 49 km of guardrails, leaving 2,027 km remaining. At this rate, it is expected to take 40 years to complete the upgrades.

Assemblyman Kim Hoe-jae pointed out, "Considering the speed of improvements, taking 40 years seems like a complacent response when thinking about public safety," and emphasized, "The Korea Expressway Corporation needs to accelerate upgrades by increasing the budget."

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