"Driver Seems to Have Been Drinking, Caught After Bus Passenger Report"

Blood Alcohol Concentration Test Results Show License Suspension Level
Driving Under the Influence for About 2.5 km from the Garage

A city bus driver in Gimhae-si, Gyeongnam, was caught by the police for drunk driving while carrying passengers. On the 6th, the Gimhae Jungbu Police Station announced that they had booked a bus driver in his 50s, Mr. A, without detention on charges of driving under the influence (violation of the Road Traffic Act).

Mr. A is suspected of driving about 2.5 km under the influence from a garage in Gimhae-si at around 2:40 p.m. on the 29th of last month. It is known that there were three passengers on the bus at the time. One of the passengers reported to the police that the bus driver seemed to have been drinking, which led to his arrest.

A city bus driver in Gimhae-si, Gyeongnam, was caught by the police for drunk driving while carrying passengers. On the 6th, the Gimhae Jungbu Police Station announced that they had booked Mr. A, a bus driver in his 50s from Gimhae-si, without detention on charges of driving under the influence (violation of the Road Traffic Act).
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Based on the location provided by the informant, the police arrived at the scene, stopped Mr. A while he was driving, and measured his blood alcohol concentration. The result showed 0.069%, which is the level for license suspension. During the police investigation, Mr. A stated, "I drank heavily until late at night the day before and started driving in the afternoon." The police plan to summon Mr. A later this week to investigate the exact circumstances of the incident.

17 Cases of Bus Driver Drunk Driving Accidents Occurred in the Past 5 Years

As cases of bus drivers operating vehicles under the influence have been repeatedly detected, there is growing momentum to change the lax alcohol management system. Transportation companies set procedures for alcohol testing of bus drivers according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's "Regulations on Alcohol Testing and Recording for Passenger Vehicle Operators." However, aside from the methods of alcohol measurement, the regulation lacks detailed provisions, so the number of retests and disciplinary standards based on blood alcohol concentration vary by company.

Moreover, although alcohol testing is conducted before driving for bus drivers, some companies do not strictly enforce this procedure, resulting in drivers being caught driving under the influence. Especially in the afternoon after lunch, many transportation companies rely on self-testing due to the absence of supervisory personnel. Given this situation, there are frequent cases where drivers who caused accidents did not properly undergo alcohol testing before taking the wheel. Among these, nationwide, there have been a total of 17 bus driver drunk driving accidents in the past five years, resulting in one death and 45 injuries.