Gyeongbuk Province Conducts Safety Inspection on Bicycle Lanes and Personal Mobility Device Management Practices

Gyeongbuk Province inspected factors that compromise the safety of bicycle lanes and personal mobility devices.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongguk Lee] Gyeongbuk Province conducted a ‘Safety Inspection on Bicycle Roads and Personal Mobility Device Management’ targeting six local cities and counties (Pohang, Andong, Gumi, Sangju, Goryeong, Chilgok) from March 21 to May 10.

This inspection was carried out to identify safety hazards on bicycle roads and provide a safe road environment for users, as the use of personal mobility devices such as electric kickboards and bicycles increases during the spring season.

The total number of bicycle road routes in Gyeongbuk is 1,532 routes covering 2,194.04 km. The inspection covered 909 routes spanning 1,279.22 km in the six cities and counties (including 297.21 km of the National Long-distance Bicycle Road).

The main issues identified in the safety inspection were ▲non-disclosure of bicycle road routes and improper ledger management ▲inadequate maintenance and safety management of bicycle roads (poor maintenance of road markings, pavement, bicycle signs, bicycle crossings, and auxiliary facilities) ▲failure to establish plans to promote bicycle use, totaling 28 cases.

Gyeongbuk Province protects the safety of its residents by preventing safety accidents on bicycle paths.

Regarding the increasing safety accidents involving personal mobility devices every year, the revised Road Traffic Act, which took effect in May last year, established regulations allowing the police to impose fines and enforce rules such as requiring personal mobility device users to hold licenses, wear safety gear, prohibiting riding on sidewalks, and banning drunk driving.

At the frontline cities and counties, there are no regulations for disposing of abandoned electric kickboards, which cause many complaints due to traffic inconvenience, making enforcement and fine imposition difficult; thus, institutional improvements are needed going forward.

The province notified the relevant cities and counties to take action on the safety inspection findings and informed all 23 cities and counties of the results so they can conduct their own bicycle road inspections.

Kim Jung-kwon, Director of the Disaster Safety Office of Gyeongbuk Province, said, “Taking this safety inspection as an opportunity, we will strengthen the safety management system for personal mobility devices and do our best to protect the safety of residents by preventing various safety accidents through bicycle road safety inspections and follow-up measures.”

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