Seongdong-gu, Comprehensive Cleanup of Illegal Advertisements Around Schools During the Start of the Semester

Focused Maintenance Around Kindergartens and Elementary, Middle, and High Schools Until March 29
Creating Pleasant School Routes by Cleaning Harmful Advertisements, Old and Illegal Signs, and Legitimate Banners in Child Protection Zones

Seongdong-gu, Seoul (Mayor Jung Won-oh) is conducting an intensive inspection and cleanup of illegal advertisements around schools until the 29th of this month to create safe school routes for the spring semester.

For this inspection, the district formed a joint public-private inspection team together with the Seongdong-gu branch of the Outdoor Advertising Association.

The joint inspection team is focusing on cleaning up around kindergartens, elementary, middle, and high schools located within Children's Protection Zones (within 300m of main entrances of elementary schools, etc.) and Educational Environment Protection Zones (within 200m of school boundaries). They are also working on adjacent areas outside these zones where student safety management is necessary.

The targets for cleanup include old or illegally installed fixed advertisements (wall-mounted, protruding, pole, rooftop signs), obscene, decadent, or provocative flyers and business card-type advertisements, and mobile advertisements such as banners, sandwich boards, and balloon-type sandwich boards (air lights) that obstruct pedestrian traffic.

In particular, following the amendment of the Outdoor Advertising Act in January this year, the district plans to focus on removing political party banners prohibited from being installed within Children's Protection Zones to prevent safety accidents.

Advertisements that threaten pedestrian traffic safety, including mobile advertisements within the cleanup zones, will be immediately removed by the district office. Owners of old, defective, or illegal fixed advertisements are required to voluntarily remove them promptly to prevent safety accidents caused by damage or falling.

Jung Won-oh, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, said, “We will thoroughly inspect and crack down on illegal advertisements around schools to secure pedestrian safety and provide emotional stability for children, thereby creating a pleasant school commuting environment.”