Seoul Traffic Accident Deaths Down 12%, 2.3 per 100,000... Lowest Since Accident Records Began

219 Traffic Accident Deaths Last Year, Lowest Since 1970
Deaths Down 12% and Accidents Down 10% from Previous Year... However, Pedestrian and Elderly Death Rates Remain High

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The number of traffic accidents in Seoul last year decreased by more than 10%, and the number of fatalities also dropped by over 12%. In particular, the number of deaths recorded the lowest level since traffic accident statistics began in 1970.

According to Seoul City on the 16th, the number of traffic accident fatalities in Seoul last year was 219, down 31 from 250 in 2019. This corresponds to 2.3 deaths per 100,000 people and 0.7 deaths per 10,000 vehicles. With an average of 0.6 deaths per day, it is the lowest since records began in 1970 and has continued to decline for six consecutive years since 2014.

This figure is similar to Norway (2.0), Switzerland (2.7), and the United Kingdom (2.7), which have the lowest traffic accident fatality rates among OECD member countries based on 2018 statistics. It is lower than the OECD average (5.6), Japan (3.3), France (5.0), Canada (5.2), and the United States (11.2). However, it remains higher than advanced traffic safety cities such as Tokyo (1.0), Berlin (1.2), and London (1.4).

The number of traffic accidents and injuries also decreased significantly. The number of traffic accidents dropped by 10.3%, from 39,258 in 2019 to 35,227 last year, and the number of injured persons decreased by 11.9%, from 55,904 in 2019 to 47,513 in 2020.

By accident type, pedestrian accidents involving vehicles resulted in 113 deaths last year, down 18.7% from 139 in 2019. The proportion of pedestrian fatalities among total deaths also decreased by 4 percentage points, from 56% in 2019 to 52%. By age group, seniors aged 65 and older accounted for 87 deaths, representing 39% of total traffic accident fatalities, while child fatalities were 2, about 1%.

By vehicle type, passenger cars accounted for 59 deaths, or 27% of total fatalities, followed by motorcycles at 20%, taxis at 15%, and freight trucks at 14%. Motorcycle fatalities increased from 39 (13% of total deaths) in 2018 to 49 (20%) in 2019, and further to 50 (23%) last year.

A Seoul city official explained, "The increase in motorcycle deliveries is attributed to the rise in single-person households due to ongoing nuclear family trends and the increase in non-face-to-face consumption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic last year."

Based on this traffic accident statistical analysis, Seoul City plans to establish the 4th Seoul Traffic Safety Basic Plan within this year to prepare mid- to long-term traffic safety measures. Baek Ho, Director of Seoul City Urban Transportation Office, said, “The significant decrease in traffic accident fatalities in 2020 is a remarkable achievement. We will work more closely with related organizations such as the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, focusing on the safety of vulnerable groups such as pedestrians and seniors, to develop Seoul into a world-class traffic safety city.”

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