Designed with a 45-Degree Tilt, Reducing Blind Spots and Turning Radius... Promoting Transportation Projects for Accompanying Vulnerable Groups
Enabling Front Parking Reduces Parking Time by 20 Seconds... Decrease in 'Door Ding' Accidents
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] For the first time in Seoul, angled parking lots with high parking convenience will be introduced. Although it has been difficult to find in urban areas where parking space efficiency is prioritized, this is an attempt to convert parking spaces into user-centered areas that allow convenient and safe use for vulnerable road users such as pregnant women, children, and the elderly who have difficulty getting on and off vehicles.
On the 12th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it has introduced the ‘ㅅ (Siot)-shaped parking lot,’ which changes the existing flat partition form, for the first time at the Sincheon Yusuji public parking lot to improve parking lot usability.
The city has been implementing various policies for vulnerable road users, such as securing one subway station and one walking path, expanding low-floor buses and taxis for the disabled, and enhancing walking mobility convenience for vulnerable groups. In addition, to increase citizen awareness, the city is discovering and promoting new transportation projects for accompanying vulnerable users, making the ‘ㅅ (Siot)-shaped parking lot’ a meaningful first step.
The ‘Siot parking lot’ changes the partition lines to a 45-degree tilted form, reducing blind spots and turning radius when parking vehicles. This allows even beginners to park easily and quickly, reducing parking time and accident risks. This parking method is already common in foreign countries and at rest areas in Korea.
For this project, Seoul conducted field surveys and partition designs since January and made efforts to build consensus through prior text notifications to minimize citizen inconvenience during construction. After temporarily closing the partitions for a month in May, the reorganization was completed swiftly.
The installation target was selected from flat outdoor parking lots where partition changes are relatively easy, considering facilities and usage environments comprehensively. At the Sincheon Yusuji public parking lot, 54 partitions on the west side were designed in a 45-degree form so that users could experience the effects of the partition change. With the Siot parking lot, front-in parking becomes possible, greatly enhancing parking convenience for citizens. Compared to perpendicular or parallel partitions, parking time is expected to decrease by about 20 seconds, and the risk of safety accidents such as ‘door ding’ incidents within the parking lot is expected to be reduced. Additionally, extra space between vehicles allows vulnerable road users such as pregnant women, infants, and the elderly to get on and off conveniently.
Moreover, the Sincheon Yusuji public parking lot is located near citizen rest areas such as the Ecological Park and Gwangnaru Hangang Park, so it is expected to provide safe and convenient parking for family visitors. The operation start date is from the 13th, and citizens wishing to use it should enter through the west side partitions of the Sincheon Yusuji public parking lot.
Meanwhile, the city plans to conduct satisfaction surveys targeting users (seasonal and hourly) of the Siot public parking lot to continuously improve and analyze the effects of the project and consider expanding it to other public parking lots. Furthermore, as part of transportation projects that carefully consider the convenience of vulnerable users and passengers, the city will proceed step-by-step with projects such as △‘ㅅ (Siot)-shaped’ parking lots convenient for vulnerable road users △support for purchasing electric wheelchairs for pedestrians with disabilities caused by traffic accidents △pilot introduction of bus voice guidance systems.
Baek Ho, Director of Urban Transportation at Seoul City, said, “This ㅅ (Siot)-shaped parking lot project was not simply about changing partitions but was promoted with careful consideration to resolve inconveniences for vulnerable users such as pregnant women who have difficulty getting on and off during parking.” He added, “We will continue to actively prepare various transportation policies that enhance citizen convenience from the perspective of accompanying vulnerable users.”
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