Assemblyman Jo O-seop: "Half of Traffic Fatal Accidents Occur Between Midnight and Dawn"

One in Five Highway Accidents Occur on the Gyeongbu Expressway

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] It has been revealed that one out of five highway accidents during the holiday season occurred on the Gyeongbu Expressway. The main cause of accidents was driver inattention to the front, and half of the fatal accidents happened between midnight and dawn.

According to data submitted by the Korea Expressway Corporation to Cho O-seop, a member of the National Assembly from the Democratic Party representing Gwangju Buk-gu Gap and a member of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, 235 highway traffic accidents occurred during holiday seasons over the past five years (2016?2020), resulting in 13 deaths and 100 injuries.

Among the 13 fatal highway accidents during holiday seasons in the past five years, 6 occurred between midnight and dawn. The peak accident time was between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m., with 43 cases.

The location with the most frequent traffic accidents was the Gyeongbu Expressway, accounting for 52 cases, or 22.1% of the total 235 accidents during this period.

Next were the Seohaean Expressway with 21 cases, Namhae Expressway with 17 cases, Jungbu Naeryuk Expressway with 17 cases, and Jungbu Expressway with 17 cases.

As for causes, driver inattention was the most common with 84 cases (35.7%), followed by speeding with 40 cases (17%), drowsy driving with 31 cases (13.2%), and failure to maintain a safe distance with 22 cases (9.4%).

Among the 13 fatal accidents, 11 cases (84.6%) were caused by inattention, other driver-related reasons (such as carelessness), and similar factors.

Assemblyman Cho O-seop stated, “During holiday seasons, long-distance driving and family travel require special attention to safe driving. Although highway traffic volume is expected to decrease this holiday due to COVID-19, drivers should be especially cautious when driving between midnight and dawn.”