Most Pedestrian Deaths in Right-Turn Traffic Accidents Occur at Crosswalks

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] More than half of the pedestrians who died after being hit by right-turning vehicles were victims while crossing crosswalks.

The National Police Agency and the Korea Road Traffic Authority announced on the 17th that from 2018 to 2020, 212 pedestrians died and 13,150 were injured after being hit by right-turning vehicles. Looking at the cases, 126 people, accounting for 59%, died while crossing the road, and 94 people died while crossing crosswalks. In addition, 35% of the cases involved accidents while walking on the roadway, getting on or off vehicles, or working on the road. The Authority stated, "Pedestrian accidents caused by right-turn traffic accidents often occur because drivers fail to fulfill their duty to protect pedestrians," and urged, "It is important for drivers to develop a safe driving habit of stopping at intersections."

The most right-turn pedestrian traffic accidents occurred at the Yangpyeong-dong intersection in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, and the Cheonho intersection in Gangdong-gu, Seoul, with six cases each. To ensure pedestrian safety against right-turning vehicles at intersections, the National Police Agency plans to amend the Road Traffic Act to expand the obligation to stop temporarily at crosswalks starting this July. The enforcement regulations of the same law, including the introduction of right-turn traffic signals, will also be implemented from January 2023.

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