Yellow Crosswalks and CCTV Installation... Songpa-gu Improves Children's School Routes

Most Child Traffic Accidents in School Zones Occur While Crossing
Secured 1.85 Billion KRW, Invested 2.1 Billion KRW... Six Projects Focused This Year
Installation of Yellow Crosswalks, Expansion of Protection Zones, Speed Enforcement CCTV Installation, etc.

Songpa-gu (District Mayor Seo Gang-seok) will focus on securing safety on children's school routes throughout this year. In particular, it will emphasize preventing accidents that may occur while pedestrians are crossing in school zones (hereinafter referred to as School Zones).

According to a joint inspection result announced in October 2022 by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Korea Road Traffic Authority targeting 40 high-accident School Zones, the most common type of child accident was "accidents while crossing," accounting for 41.2% (35 cases).

Accordingly, the district established a "Comprehensive Plan for School Zone Improvement Projects" in February this year and is promoting six sector-specific projects to ensure safety within School Zones.

The specific projects include ▲ installation of yellow crosswalks at 23 schools ▲ designation of 5 new or expanded School Zones ▲ installation of 4 CCTV cameras for speed and signal violation monitoring ▲ installation of sidewalks and protective fences at 2 locations ▲ reduction of speed limits (from 30km/h to 20km/h) at 4 locations ▲ expansion and maintenance of safety facilities throughout the district.

Additionally, to ensure the walking safety of elderly pedestrians who are vulnerable in traffic, six senior centers and their surrounding areas will be designated as Elderly Protection Zones, with speed limits and facility improvements planned.

To this end, the district will invest a total of 2.15 billion KRW, including 1.85 billion KRW from city funds.

Seo Gang-seok, Mayor of Songpa-gu, stated, "We will do our best to create safe school routes, understanding the concerns of parents whose children commute alone to and from school," and added, "Furthermore, we will strive to create a pedestrian environment where all vulnerable road users, from children to the elderly, can travel safely and conveniently."