[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyesook] A 'yellow crosswalk' will be installed in the school zone near Shingwang Elementary School in Incheon, where an elementary school student was fatally struck by an illegally turning cargo truck last year.
On the 10th, the Incheon Police Agency announced that, in consultation with the Incheon Autonomous Police Committee, they will install and pilot operate eight yellow crosswalks in the school zone near Shingwang Elementary School in Jung-gu.
This change involves altering the crosswalk color from white to yellow so that drivers can clearly recognize the school zone.
The Shingwang Elementary School zone is where a 10-year-old elementary student crossing the crosswalk alone was fatally hit by a cargo truck making an illegal right turn in March last year. In July of the same year, a man in his 60s riding a bicycle was also killed by a dump truck in this school zone.
The police decided to install yellow crosswalks considering the high volume of cargo truck traffic, the irregular six-way intersection shape of the road, and the high risk of pedestrian accidents.
After a pilot operation until October, the police plan to analyze the effectiveness of the yellow crosswalks, such as the compliance rate of vehicles stopping temporarily, and consider expanding to other areas.
Among OECD member countries, Switzerland, which has the lowest number of traffic accident deaths, has all crosswalks painted yellow. The United States and Hong Kong also install and operate yellow crosswalks in school zones.
Domestically, seven city and provincial police agencies, including Incheon, Daegu, northern Gyeonggi, Gangwon, Chungbuk, Jeonnam, and Gyeongnam, are promoting pilot operations.
A police official stated, "According to the revised Road Traffic Act, drivers must stop temporarily even at crosswalks without signals when passing through school zones," adding, "We will promote various traffic safety policies to protect pedestrians, such as yellow crosswalks, to create a safer traffic environment."
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