Severe Injury in Sinchon Electric Keyboard Backward Riding Accident
Cases of Overcapacity Boarding Continue
No License Plate, Police Rely on On-Site Tracking
On December 30 last year, an electric scooter traveling in the wrong direction on a roadway near Sinchon Myeongmul Street in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, collided with an oncoming passenger car. As a result of the accident, a woman in her 20s driving the scooter sustained serious injuries, and a man in his 30s riding as a passenger fell into unconsciousness. It was reported that at the time of the accident, they violated the passenger capacity limit (1 person) by riding the electric scooter together.
Although enforcement of regulations on personal mobility devices (PM), including electric scooters, has been in place for over two years following amendments to the Road Traffic Act, cases of exceeding the passenger capacity continue to occur. Since electric scooters do not have license plates and rely solely on police field tracking, and the penalties are relatively light, there are limitations to preventing illegal driving through enforcement alone.
According to the National Police Agency on the 4th, the total number of violations for failing to comply with safety regulations under the Road Traffic Act while riding electric scooters last year was 188,518 cases. This represents a 12% increase compared to the previous year (167,605 cases).
On May 13, 2021, when the revised Road Traffic Act strengthening regulations on the use of personal mobility devices (PM) such as electric kickboards came into effect, traffic safety officers from the Gangnam Police Station were conducting guidance and promotional activities around Samseong Station in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. According to the revision, only those holding a "Class 2 Motorized Bicycle License" or higher can ride electric kickboards, and a fine of 20,000 won is imposed for riding without a helmet. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@
By type, failure to wear a helmet was the most common violation with 136,348 cases. Unlicensed driving violations followed with 31,939 cases, while drunk driving and passenger capacity violations recorded 7,038 and 950 cases respectively. Although passenger capacity violations slightly decreased compared to the previous year (1,182 cases), considering that only 416 cases were detected during the first seven months after enforcement began in May 2021, it shows that illegal cases have not significantly declined over two years.
The number of accidents involving electric scooters has also increased significantly. According to the Traffic Accident Analysis System of the Korea Road Traffic Authority, the number of accidents involving electric scooters last year was 2,386, a 38% increase from the previous year (1,735 cases). The number of fatalities (26 people) also rose compared to 2021 (19 people).
Unlike cars, electric scooters lack a body structure to protect riders, so accidents occurring while exceeding the passenger capacity can lead to severe injuries. In fact, in May last year, two high school girls riding an electric scooter together near an intersection in Seocho-gu, Seoul, collided with a taxi, resulting in one death and one serious injury.
On the 23rd, when Seoul City implemented comprehensive improvement measures such as setting return restriction zones to prevent illegal parking of shared electric scooters and reduce indiscriminate towing, shared electric scooters were left abandoned in Taepyeongno 1-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul. Although a towing request was made for the abandoned shared scooters that day, the towing did not occur even after an hour. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@
The police maintain that it is difficult to completely prevent illegal driving through enforcement alone. Since electric scooters do not have license plates like cars, it is challenging to track offenders based solely on photo reports from citizens. A police official explained, "Electric scooters do not have license plates, so police must physically follow the scooter to catch violations. However, chasing them can lead to accidents such as the scooter tipping over, which poses difficulties during enforcement."
The relatively low level of penalties is also cited as one reason why illegal driving persists. Under the current Road Traffic Act, unlicensed driving on an electric scooter results in a fine of 100,000 KRW, exceeding the passenger capacity by one or more persons incurs a fine of 40,000 KRW, and failure to wear a helmet carries a fine of 20,000 KRW.
In contrast, for motorcycles, violating the passenger capacity (1 or 2 persons) can lead to license cancellation or a fine of up to 200,000 KRW. A police official stated, "The fine standards must consider fairness with other modes of transportation. Although electric scooter accidents are increasing, it is not possible to raise fines only for this mode of transport."
Therefore, there are calls to establish fundamental measures through guidelines that include management standards for electric scooters. It is necessary to have comprehensive guidelines covering safety regulations related to electric scooters, not just enforcement against illegal driving. Two bills known as the "Personal Mobility Device Safety and Convenience Promotion Act," regarded as the PM Basic Law, were proposed in the National Assembly in 2020 but are currently pending.
Professor Kim Pil-su of the Future Automotive Department at Daelim University said, "There are limits to managing electric scooter accidents with only police enforcement and current laws adapted from motorcycles. Bicycles and scooters have completely different body structures. A separate chapter dealing exclusively with PMs should be created in the Road Traffic Act so that specialized PM licenses can be established and comprehensive insurance can be introduced, enabling subsequent safety measures."
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