[Report] Surprise Drunk Driving Crackdown in School Zones... School Vehicles Without Seatbelts, Guardians Not Riding Along

Mapo Police Station, Sangam-dong, Ahyeon-dong, etc.
Intensive Crackdown on Child Protection Zones
Report on Drunk Driving Checks During School Dismissal
Police Officer Deployment by Time for New Semester

At around 1:20 p.m. on the 12th, in a school zone in Sangam-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul, the Mapo Police Station’s enforcement team, conducting a special drunk driving crackdown in the school zone for the new semester, stopped a white passenger car just 20 minutes into the operation.

On the afternoon of the 12th, police conducted a drunk driving crackdown in a child protection zone in Sangam-dong, Seoul.
Photo by Heo Young-han

When the police inserted a breathalyzer into the driver’s side window, a beeping sound was heard and a red light lit up on the device. The driver, Mr. A, in his 50s, got out of the car with a bewildered expression and blew into the device once more. When a short beep sounded and the green light appeared on the device, Mr. A sighed in relief, saying, "I couldn’t brush my teeth after eating, so I rinsed my mouth with mouthwash, which seems to have caused a malfunction."

On this day, the Mapo Police Station conducted a focused drunk driving crackdown in two school zones in Mapo-gu. This operation was part of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s traffic safety campaign aimed at preventing traffic accidents involving children and creating a safe route for students commuting to and from school for the new semester.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency is collaborating with related organizations such as the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, and the Korea Transportation Safety Authority to enforce traffic law violations and promote accident prevention until the 22nd. The crackdown in the targeted areas involved 10 traffic police officers and 4 patrol cars.

Three Drunk Driving Cases... Multiple Traffic Violations Also Detected

On the same day, 31 police stations across Seoul simultaneously conducted crackdowns in 47 school zones. A total of 297 traffic law violations were detected throughout Seoul. Among these, 84 cases of signal violations and 8 cases of pedestrian protection violations were recorded. Notably, three cases of drunk driving were also caught.

In Mapo-gu, no drunk drivers were caught, but many drivers who did not comply with traffic laws were apprehended by the police. In the two school zones in Sangam-dong and Ahyeon-dong, 12 and 9 traffic violations were detected respectively. The most common violation was failure to wear seat belts, with 16 cases, 10 of which occurred in vehicles transporting children to and from school. Among these 10 cases, 4 involved child passengers under the age of 13 not wearing seat belts.

Drivers at the scene appeared surprised, as if they had not anticipated the sudden daytime crackdown, and stopped their vehicles.

Mr. B (53), a driver of a school bus for an academy, was caught and had to write a statement because no guardian was on board. According to the Road Traffic Act, an adult guardian must be present on a children’s school bus. Failure to comply results in a fine of up to 300,000 KRW for the academy operator.

Mr. B explained, "Since it’s the beginning of the semester, dismissal times are irregular, and the teacher responsible for accompanying the children got the timing wrong, so the guardian was not on the vehicle."

Driver Mr. C was caught for not wearing a seat belt. Mr. C said, "I forgot to put on my seat belt after coming back from the restroom," adding, "I will never forget to wear my seat belt again."

On the afternoon of the 12th, police stopped a driver within a school zone in Sangam-dong, Seoul.
Photo by Heo Young-han

Drivers caught violating traffic laws and parking regulations within school zones face fines and penalties that are doubled and tripled, respectively, compared to those on regular roads.

Jang Daegwang, head of the Traffic Division at Mapo Police Station, said, "We aimed to raise awareness among general drivers through daytime drunk driving crackdowns," emphasizing, "The purpose is to enhance social recognition that school zones must be absolutely safe spaces."

The police stated that they cannot let their guard down as cases of drunk driving during actual dismissal times have also been reported.

Chief Jang explained, "Although fewer than at night, there are cases of driving under the influence of alcohol or hangover driving during the day," adding, "Since traffic accidents involving children frequently occur between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m., we are deploying police officers by time slots and focusing on cracking down on traffic law violations for the new semester."

On the 12th, students of Haneul Elementary School in Sangam-dong, Mapo-gu, stood side by side wearing backpack covers displaying the school zone speed limit.
Photo by Lee Ji-eun

On the same day, the Mapo Police Station also conducted accident prevention promotional activities in front of Haneul Elementary School located in Sangam-dong. The campaign was attended by members of the Green Mothers’ Association and officials from the Korea Transportation Safety Authority.

The Green Mothers’ Association produced fluorescent backpack covers to make students more visible to drivers and distributed them to students, while the Mapo Police Station handed out pamphlets containing children’s traffic safety rules. The Korea Transportation Safety Authority promoted compliance with traffic laws by holding placards with safety rules during students’ dismissal times.