'Stunt Riding' Continues in Bicycle Accident Hotspots... Due to Safety Negligence and Insufficient Infrastructure

Korea Road Traffic Authority Selects 213 High Bicycle Accident Areas Nationwide
"Urgent Need for Proactive Measures and Guidance"

At around 6 p.m. on the 1st, at the Jegi-dong Station intersection in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul. Amid the bustling pedestrians and vehicles visiting Seoul Yakryeong Market and Jeongneungcheon, bicycles illegally riding stood out. These cyclists were weaving between sidewalks and roads, and some even made left turns across the intersection while cars stopped briefly at red lights. None of the bicycle riders wore helmets. A local resident, Mr. Jeong (34, male), expressed his frustration, saying, "It's inconvenient when walking, and there have been many close calls with accidents when driving. This area is a habitual congestion zone, and cyclists who leisurely pedal on the road or disregard traffic laws seem to be a contributing factor." Last year, there were a total of four bicycle accidents here, resulting in three serious injuries.

On the 27th at around 6 p.m., citizens riding bicycles without helmets were operating on the sidewalk and roadway near Jegi-dong Station intersection in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul.
Photo by Tae-won Choi skking@

At around 7 p.m. on the same day, the situation was similar at the Sangwangsimni Station intersection in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. When cars stopped at the red light, a bicycle riding on the road began weaving through the cars. There were also bicycles swiftly maneuvering through pedestrians while crossing the crosswalk. Ms. Kim (60, female), who crossed the crosswalk alongside a bicycle, said, "I think riding bicycles is good, but I wish they would at least follow some basic order. Getting off and walking across doesn't make you arrive much later, and I think it would be better for their own safety as well." This area also saw four bicycle accidents last year, with four people sustaining various injuries.

Both the Jegi-dong Station intersection and the Sangwangsimni Station intersection are designated as 'high bicycle accident zones' by the Korea Road Traffic Authority. The Authority analyzes bicycle accident data annually and announces high accident zones; as of last year, 213 locations nationwide were selected. The selection criterion is locations where four or more bicycle accidents occur within a 100-meter radius in one year. By region, Seoul had the most with 86 locations, followed by Gyeonggi with 55, Daegu with 29, Gyeongsangbuk-do with 10, and Busan with 6.

Around 7 p.m. on the 27th at the Sangwangsimni Station intersection in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, three cyclists were crossing the crosswalk while riding their bicycles through the crowd.
Photo by Taewon Choi skking@

Over the past five years, domestic bicycle accidents numbered 12,389 in 2018, 13,693 in 2019, 13,754 in 2020, 13,469 in 2021, and 13,270 last year, averaging 13,315 annually. During this period, 969 deaths resulted from bicycle accidents. The persistent causes of bicycle accidents are cited as cyclists' lack of safety awareness and poor infrastructure. According to a report titled 'Analysis and Implications of Bicycle Accidents' released by the Insurance Research Institute on the 27th, 39.1% of bicycle fatalities occurred at intersections, with the main cause attributed to cyclists not obeying traffic signals. The report also analyzed that "bicycle accidents occur more frequently on general roads than on dedicated bicycle lanes," and that "the lack of cycling conditions in urban areas contributes to increased accident risk."

Experts unanimously agree that urgent measures are needed in high bicycle accident zones. Professor Yoo Jeong-hoon of the Department of Traffic Engineering Systems at Ajou University said, "While it may not be possible to build bicycle infrastructure all at once, it is necessary to proactively develop it at high accident zones. For locations where physical infrastructure improvements are difficult, posting banners and signs to inform that it is a high accident zone and advising cyclists to dismount and walk their bicycles could be helpful." Professor Lee Soo-beom of the Department of Traffic Engineering at the University of Seoul also emphasized, "Even if accident zones are the same, the reasons differ, so analyzing regional characteristics is urgent. For common issues like signal violations, posting warning notices is necessary, and for region-specific causes, tailored countermeasures should be devised."

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