Increase in Bicycle Users Due to Prolonged COVID-19, Bicycle Safety Education Implemented to Promote PM Use
Certification Issued and Fare Discounts Offered Upon Passing Written and Practical Bicycle Driving Tests After Safety Education Completion
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] As the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic has increased the number of users of non-face-to-face transportation such as bicycles, and with changes in the transportation environment including the allowance of Personal Mobility (PM) devices like electric kickboards on bicycle lanes, Seoul City announced on the 18th that it will implement a bicycle safety education and certification system.
This year, the bicycle certification system is scheduled to be implemented in four districts: Seongdong-gu, Songpa-gu, Mapo-gu, and Guro-gu. Seongdong-gu (Seongdong-gu Bicycle Experience Learning Center) will manage the northwest area, Songpa-gu (Songpa Safety Experience Education Center) the southwest area, and Seoul City will operate education in the northeast and southeast areas at Nanji Bicycle Park in Mapo-gu and the Children's Traffic Park in Guro-gu.
In the second half of this year, through the collaborative project with the Office of Education called ‘Bicycle Safety Education and Certification System Visiting Schools,’ efforts are underway to establish a long-term culture of safe bicycle use by enabling youth to learn safe bicycle riding methods and traffic etiquette from an early age.
Additionally, considering the increasing demand from citizens for bicycle maintenance education as bicycle usage rises, hands-on bicycle maintenance training will be conducted four times a year.
Seoul City plans to develop maintenance education teaching materials this year to allow participants to effectively engage in repeated learning after attending the bicycle maintenance training. Using QR codes embedded in the materials, short videos of about five minutes per practice topic will be prepared for easy and convenient learning.
Schedules and contact information for bicycle safety education by district can be found on Seoul City's official bicycle blog, Instagram, Facebook, and individual district websites. Information on Seoul City's bicycle instructor training, the four-area bicycle certification system, and bicycle maintenance education can be checked and applied for immediately through the ‘Seoul Lifelong Learning Portal.’ Each program has a capacity of about 20 participants.
Oh Se-woo, Director of Seoul City's Bicycle Policy Division, stated, “With the surge in bicycle use as a non-face-to-face transportation mode during the COVID-19 situation, establishing a culture of safe bicycle use has become even more important. By evaluating and certifying bicycle users' riding skills similarly to drivers of automobiles, we will foster a culture of safe use.”
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