By Kim Se-jeong
The government will take tougher action against drunken driving by lowering the blood alcohol limit for suspending a person’s license to 0.03 percent from the current 0.05 percent to reduce the number of traffic accidents caused by drunken drivers.
An average adult could be charged for drunken driving if they consume only a shot of soju, according to the officials.
The government also plans to lower the inner city speed limit to 50 kilometers per hour from the current 60.
“These measures are to protect pedestrians who are often victims of traffic accidents,” the government said Tuesday.
“We’ll hold drivers more responsible.”
With the new measures, the government is aiming to lower the number of accidents to below 2,000 per year.
According to the Interior Ministry, 4,191 people were killed in traffic accidents in 2017 across the country, higher than the government’s goal of 3,000. Almost 40 percent were killed while walking on small roads in neighborhoods or at crosswalks.
Under the new measures, the speed limit on small roads in an apartment complex or in a small village where there are more pedestrians than cars will be lowered to 30
kilometers per hour. It proved to work well in Sejong and Seoul where the government ran a pilot project.
Also, drivers will have to stop at crosswalks even when there’s no light.
For taxi drivers, one drunken driving incident will be enough for them to lose their business license.
The government will also toughen penalties for illegal parking. The current 40,000-won penalty will become 80,000 won and the police will be able to put a lock on tires if the vehicle repeatedly violates parking rules.
To protect young and old pedestrians, the government will increase the number of child protection zones, to 18,155 from the current 16,355. All school buses will be obliged to report their current location to the police using a detection device.
The government will also require school bus passengers to fasten their seat belts. Requirements to become school bus drivers will become tougher. The government said it will announce a list of qualifications later this year.
Drivers who are 75 years old and older will have to renew their driver’s license every three years, instead of every five years.
Also the government will come up with punishment for drunken bike riders and within the year will draft driving rules for personal vehicles such as kick scooters.