Gwangju Police Strengthen Drunk Driving Crackdown... Drunk Driving Accidents Surge 133.4%

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Jin-hyung] The Gwangju Police Agency and the Autonomous Police Committee (Chairman Kim Tae-bong) announced on the 8th that they will significantly strengthen crackdown activities to prevent and eradicate drunk driving as drunk driving accidents have surged due to the recently eased social distancing measures.

In the Gwangju area, since the government's social distancing easing measure to extend business hours from 9 PM to 10 PM was implemented for three weeks starting from the 19th of last month, drunk driving traffic accidents have increased by 133.4%, and drunk driving crackdowns have also increased by 65.2%.

At around 2:10 AM on the 26th of last month, a motorbike rider died in an accident caused by a drunk driver near an intersection in Seo-gu, and at around 3:13 AM on the 1st of this month, a driver who had fallen asleep while waiting at a signal due to drunk driving collided with the rear of a police vehicle that was responding at an intersection in Gwangsan-gu.

To prevent such drunk driving traffic accidents, the Gwangju Police are actively conducting crackdown activities by mobilizing all available personnel regardless of daytime, nighttime, or late-night hours, moving between main roads and side streets, focusing on high-risk areas for drunk driving such as entertainment districts and restaurant areas, as well as areas with frequent drunk driving reports.

A Gwangju Police Agency official stated, "If caught with a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of 0.035%, a fine of 2 million KRW is imposed; at the cancellation level of 0.129%, a fine of 6 million KRW is imposed; and there have been cases where drivers who caused drunk driving hit-and-run accidents were sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison. Court rulings on drunk driving are becoming stricter."

He added, "Starting from July 28, the accident burden fee for drunk driving accidents will be significantly increased from the current maximum of 15 million KRW to 170 million KRW (fully covered within the compulsory insurance limit), strengthening the economic responsibility burden. This means that in the event of a drunk driving accident, one could lose all their assets. Drunk driving is a serious crime that threatens the precious lives and property of oneself and others. We urge everyone to recognize this and never get behind the wheel after even one drink."

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