'Late-Night Reckless Driving at Namsan' 23 People Booked... Foreign and Modified Cars Driven, Frequent Accidents

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] The Yongsan Police Station in Seoul announced on the 20th that it has booked 23 individuals for violating the Road Traffic Act due to reckless driving at night on Namsan Sowol-gil (circular road) over a three-month period starting in April this year.

The drivers booked by the police are accused of repeatedly engaging in reckless driving at night, posing a threat to citizens. It was found that they mainly drove luxury foreign cars or modified vehicles.

The police conducted surveillance at key points, collected evidence of reckless driving vehicles, and analyzed videos to book the drivers. Namsan Sowol-gil is known as an area where reports and accidents related to speeding and reckless driving at night frequently occur. Last year, noise complaint calls to 112 averaged about 70 per week, and over the past three years, 21 traffic accidents causing serious injuries requiring more than three weeks of treatment occurred.

Separately from the surveillance, the police conducted large-scale crackdowns using mobile speed cameras over three months, catching about 1,000 speeding vehicles. As enforcement took place, noise complaint calls to 112 decreased by approximately 91%, averaging 6 per week.

However, the police added that under the Noise and Vibration Control Act, the exhaust noise standard of 100 to 105 dB is excessively high, limiting the ability to crack down on all noise-causing vehicles.

A police official stated, "As the full-fledged tropical nights begin, we will strengthen nighttime crackdowns to prevent residents around Namsan from suffering due to speeding and reckless driving vehicles, and in consultation with the district office, we plan to install fixed speed cameras in various locations."

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