Shift to Public Parking Lots as the Focus Since Last March
Seoul's 'Women-Only Parking Lots' are set to disappear after 14 years.
According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government on the 17th, the 'Partial Amendment to the Ordinance on the Installation and Management of Parking Lots,' which includes converting women’s safety parking spaces in the city to 'Family-Friendly Parking Spaces,' will be promulgated and enforced on the 18th.
Accordingly, the existing name of women-only parking lots is expected to change to family-friendly parking lots. The eligible users of these parking spaces will also be expanded from women to include pregnant women, elderly people, those with mobility difficulties, or drivers accompanied by infants and young children.
Women-only parking lots were introduced in 2009 to ensure women's safety. In parking areas with 30 or more spaces, at least 10% of the parking spots were allocated as women-only parking spaces.
However, the actual proportion of female users among those using these parking spaces was only 16%, and there were concerns that many women avoided using women-only parking lots, raising the need for system improvement.
Men accompanying children or pregnant women can also use women-only parking lots. However, due to limitations in terminology and lack of promotion, eligible men did not actively use these spaces, leading to calls for a name that could overcome these limitations.
Accordingly, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon announced in August last year, as part of the 'Mom and Dad Happiness Project,' that women’s safety parking lots would be converted into family-friendly parking lots.
Since March this year, the conversion has been taking place mainly in public parking lots. As of the same month, there were 69 women-only parking lots with 1,988 spaces in public parking lots across Seoul.
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