Nowon-gu Creates Pedestrian-Friendly Street Environment Focused on Vulnerable Walkers

Published 19 Jun.2023 07:08(KST)

Removal of 1,202 Unnecessary Bollards Blocking Traffic Completed

Comprehensive Survey of Crosswalk Entrances and Exits Completed, Improvement Plan to be Established in July

Complete Survey of Street Facilities Around Braille Blocks Completed, Relocation and Construction to be Finished in the Second Half of This Year

Nowon-gu (District Mayor Oh Seung-rok) announced that it is accelerating efforts to create a street environment centered on vulnerable pedestrians.

Last October, the district established a comprehensive plan for urban aesthetics and landscape improvement and decided to focus on improving three key areas that pose the greatest risks to the safe walking of vulnerable pedestrians through a full survey: ▲bollards preventing vehicle entry (hereinafter referred to as bollards), ▲crosswalk entrances and exits, and ▲street facilities around braille blocks. This is because urban aesthetics are completed based on pedestrian convenience.

Removal of Unnecessary Bollards

The district recently removed 1,202 unnecessary bollards that obstruct traffic. This was to prevent accidents caused by pedestrians tripping over bollards and to provide a convenient walking environment for wheelchair and stroller users.

Bollards installed at crosswalks and intersections along main roads will be maintained but minimized by adjusting their spacing. However, bollards in areas with low vehicle entry probability or where pedestrian traffic is frequent and may cause safety accidents will be boldly removed. As a result, 1,202 out of 1,652 bollards installed in the area were removed.

Preliminary Press Survey

Improvement of Crosswalk Entrances and Exits

A comprehensive survey of crosswalk entrances and exits was also conducted. The survey identified the curb height lowering and the aging of braille blocks at a total of 3,512 crosswalk entrances and exits installed along 194 km of sidewalks in the district. It was confirmed that 458 locations require curb height lowering and 1,012 locations need braille block improvements. An improvement plan will be established in July, and construction will be carried out annually.

Maintenance of Street Facilities Around Braille Blocks

In addition, to ensure the safe walking of visually impaired people, a full survey of street facilities around braille blocks has been completed, and improvement construction is underway. This aims to improve factors hindering the walking of approximately 2,700 visually impaired residents in the district and guarantee their walking autonomy.

According to the Road Safety Facility Installation and Management Guidelines, there should be no obstacles within at least 20 cm on both sides of linear braille blocks. The three-month survey found a total of 78 obstacles, mainly Korea Electric Power Corporation facilities, streetlights, and street trees. Since June, the district has been carrying out braille block relocation work to secure the minimum separation distance and plans to complete it by the second half of this year.

Along with this, the district is leading efforts to create a pleasant and safe sidewalk environment by cracking down on excessive storage of items on sidewalks that obstruct traffic, store expansions, and signboards. Joint crackdowns on illegal storage and advertisements are conducted more than three times a day. As of the end of May this year, 12,693 cases were immediately cleared, 13,693 items were collected, and 94 fines were imposed.

Furthermore, the district encourages voluntary correction of existing illegal buildings that threaten pedestrian safety by imposing enforcement fines and conducts continuous guidance, crackdowns, and monitoring to prevent occurrences in advance.

Oh Seung-rok, Mayor of Nowon-gu, said, “Urban aesthetics start with a street environment centered on vulnerable pedestrians,” and added, “We will continue to improve various factors causing pedestrian inconvenience and transform the streets into places where everyone can walk comfortably.”