Increasing Mechanical Parking Lots... Safety Standards to Be Strengthened

Mechanical parking system

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] Strengthened safety standards to prevent the increasing number of accidents in mechanical parking lots will be implemented.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 21st that it has revised and promulgated the "Regulations on Safety Standards and Inspection Standards for Mechanical Parking Lots," requiring the installation of devices such as human motion detectors and car fall prevention devices to prevent not only mechanical defects but also safety accidents caused by human error.

According to the Ministry, as of last year, there are a total of 40,882 mechanical parking lots nationwide, with 766,220 parking spaces. This accounts for about 3% of the 24.91 million parking spaces nationwide. Additionally, 65% of mechanical parking lot accidents in the past five years were caused by human factors such as user or maintenance worker negligence.

Accordingly, the Ministry plans to mandate the installation of motion detection devices and car fall prevention devices within mechanical parking lots. The human motion detection device prevents the parking equipment from operating if a person is still inside the parking lot, and the fall prevention device prevents cars from entering and falling below when the parking carrier is not yet in the correct position. Along with this, a "manual stop device" that can halt the operation of the equipment in emergencies must be installed not only on the external operation control devices but also inside the entrances and in the machine rooms.

Safety measures during maintenance work will also be strengthened. Safety nets must be installed on the lower floors to protect lives in the event of unexpected falls, and inspection ladders meeting the standards of the Industrial Safety and Health Act must be installed. The width of inspection openings (passages) leading to the machine room must be at least 60 cm, and the height of the machine room space must be secured at 1.5 m or more.

Additionally, to ensure the safety of parking lot users, structures to prevent foot entrapment accidents, "carrier protrusion prevention devices," "direction change fixing devices," and safety fences are also mandated.

The revised standards will apply to mechanical parking lots installed after the enforcement date scheduled six months from now (March 23 next year). However, safety fences and structures to prevent foot entrapment accidents will also apply to existing mechanical parking lots and must be reinforced within six months after enforcement.

Myungso Uh, Director General of Comprehensive Transportation Policy at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, stated, "We will continuously strengthen safety management so that mechanical parking lots, which are used close to daily life, can be recognized as safer parking facilities," and urged, "Please thoroughly comply with safety standards and safety rules at mechanical parking lot sites."