Transition Team Proposes Flexible Adjustment of Safe Speed 5030... "Considering Both Public Safety and Convenience"

Speed Limit of 30km in School Zones Also Subject to Adjustment
Increased to 40km During Late Night Hours with Almost No Child Pedestrians

[Asia Economy reporters Moon Jiwon and Lee Gimin] The Political, Judicial, and Administrative Subcommittee of the Presidential Transition Committee proposed on the 5th, after discussions with the National Police Agency, to flexibly adjust and operate speed limits for Safe Speed 5030 and speed restrictions in school zones.

Park Sunae, a member of the Political, Judicial, and Administrative Subcommittee of the Transition Committee, held a briefing at the committee's office in Tongui-dong, Seoul, in the morning and stated, "This follows criticisms that the road environment and surrounding conditions were not sufficiently considered."

Safe Speed 5030, fully implemented in April last year, is a policy that limits travel speeds to within 50 km/h on urban arterial roads and within 30 km/h on side streets to protect vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists. Although pedestrian fatalities within the 5030 zones decreased by 16.7% after the policy's implementation, there have been continuous criticisms that the uniform speed regulations did not adequately consider the characteristics and conditions of each road.

Park explained, "To supplement and improve these issues, we plan to raise the speed limit to 60 km/h in sections where pedestrian access is difficult or pedestrian density is extremely low, thus posing little risk of accidents, and in areas adjacent to green spaces rather than residential, commercial, or industrial zones where the likelihood of speeding is low, sections that have little correlation with pedestrian safety."

She added, "Recently, the Seoul Metropolitan Autonomous Police Committee requested the police to raise the speed limit to 60 km/h on 20 sections, including bridges over the Han River, where pedestrian access is difficult and accident risk is low. The Transition Committee also proposed nationwide expansion of speed limit increases in necessary sections, considering both public safety and convenience."

The Transition Committee also holds the position that the 30 km/h speed limit in school zones needs some adjustments. Since the amendment of the Road Traffic Act in March 2020, which mandated the installation of unmanned enforcement devices in school zones, most school zones have had a 30 km/h speed limit enforced 24 hours a day. Due to this, proposals have continued suggesting speed increases during times when the risk of traffic accidents involving children is extremely low and traffic congestion worsens.

Accordingly, the Transition Committee plans to raise the speed limit to 40 km/h or 50 km/h during late-night hours when children are not present in school zones located on arterial roads for public convenience, and to lower the speed limit to 30 km/h only during school commute times in school zones where the current speed limit is 40 km/h or higher.

Regarding the implementation date of the revised speed limit regulations, Park emphasized, "There are many areas nationwide with a 30 km/h speed limit. Since all need to be surveyed, immediate implementation is difficult, but we plan to prepare implementation measures as soon as possible based on survey results to enhance public convenience." She added, "Currently, the National Police Agency is analyzing pedestrian density and vehicle speed data for each section and plans to flexibly verify and operate speed limits by section and time."

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