A Blue House petition titled "Please Stop the Reckless Driving of Bus Drivers" [Image source = Screenshot from the Blue House petition board]
[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Eun-young] Shortly after the heartbreaking news of a high school girl in Jinju, Gyeongnam, who became paralyzed from the neck down due to a 'cutting-in accident' last December, another tragic incident occurred recently where a woman in her 20s died after her long padded jacket sleeve got caught in the bus door on her way home from work. Amid ongoing accidents involving boarding and alighting buses, netizens have been posting petitions on the Blue House National Petition Board demanding "safe public transportation."
On the 21st, a petition titled "Please stop reckless driving by bus drivers" was posted on the Blue House National Petition Board.
The petitioner stated, "I am posting this petition to legally regulate reckless driving by bus drivers and to strengthen penalties for such behavior," adding, "Most bus drivers engage in unsafe driving practices such as sudden acceleration, abrupt braking, and pressing the door-closing button prematurely, without considering passenger safety."
They continued, "In December 2019, in Jinju, Gyeongnam, a high school girl became paralyzed from the neck down after a sudden start combined with another vehicle cutting in sharply. The victim’s family created a petition related to this incident, which received over 200,000 signatures," they mentioned.
They further pointed out, "Yesterday in Paju, a woman in her 20s lost her life when her long padded jacket got caught in the rear door as she was getting off the bus." Despite widespread outrage and petitions following the previous tragedy, nothing has changed. The petitioner said, "The bus driver claimed to have checked that everything was normal before departure, but the incident video shows the door closing immediately after the passenger alighted."
The petitioner proposed, "Buses should not start moving until passengers have held onto handrails and are seated, and the door-closing button should not be pressed immediately as passengers get off." They argued, "If at least these two traffic laws are enacted and enforced, bus accidents would likely decrease significantly."
They concluded, "No sudden starts, stop before alighting, and confirm the last passenger has alighted before departure. I hope these three bus culture rules, which anyone can follow, will prevent further tragic victims."
As of 1:30 PM on the 23rd, the petition had received about 9,800 signatures.
CCTV footage released by JTBC on the 20th. A woman in her 20s, Ms. A, who got off from the rear door of the bus, suffered a tragic accident when the sleeve of her long padding coat got caught in the door gap. [Image source = Screenshot from 'JTBC News' broadcast]
Earlier, around 8 PM on the 19th, a tragic accident occurred at a bus stop in Beopwon-eup, Paju, Gyeonggi Province, where a woman in her 20s died after her clothing got caught in the rear door while getting off the bus.
The bereaved family appealed, "Bus accidents can always be serious and dangerous to anyone, including myself. We must keep this in mind," and added, "We want safe public transportation to ensure that such incidents never happen again."
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