Jeonnam Province to Significantly Reduce Traffic Accident Fatalities

Promoting 26 Projects Including Expansion of Smart Infrastructure

Traffic enforcement camera installed in Gwangyang City. Provided by Jeonnam Province

Jeollanam-do will invest 37 billion KRW this year to expand and improve traffic safety facilities in order to reduce traffic accident fatalities.

The main projects cover four areas and 26 specific initiatives, including expanding safety facilities for vulnerable road users (the elderly and children), pedestrians, and drivers, as well as building advanced smart traffic safety infrastructure.

In particular, the province will focus on reducing fatalities from traffic accidents involving the elderly, who account for a high proportion of total traffic deaths, and will intensively expand related safety facilities.

To this end, a budget of 10 billion KRW will be allocated to expand safety facilities for vulnerable road users such as the elderly and children. Safety facilities will be installed in 19 senior protection zones and 103 child protection zones. In addition, 692 lane departure warning devices will be provided to prevent accidents involving elderly drivers.

To reduce traffic accidents involving elderly pedestrians, 11.9 billion KRW will be invested to create safe walking environments at 14 locations, install speed-reducing facilities at 54 village entrances, and set up runway-style crosswalks at 102 sites.

Fifteen hundred million KRW will also be allocated to state-of-the-art safety facilities, including 10 smart crosswalks and 13 automatic pedestrian signal extension systems. Smart crosswalks feature in-ground pedestrian signal lights and voice guidance devices to alert pedestrians and prevent traffic accidents. The automatic pedestrian signal extension system uses artificial intelligence to detect pedestrians (including vulnerable road users) who cannot cross within the allotted time and extends the crossing time to ensure a safer walking environment.

In addition, 13.6 billion KRW will be invested to improve traffic safety for drivers. Plans include improvements at 15 accident-prone locations, installation of 10 roundabouts, 81 speed enforcement cameras, and 230 visibility enhancement signs.

Kang Younggu, Director of Resident Safety for Jeollanam-do, said, "We will create a traffic environment where all residents can feel safe and secure through proactive and scientific expansion of traffic safety facilities."