At Jeil Market in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, few anticipated the second Thursday a 1-ton truck would surge into the group, killing two folks and leaving 19 others injured.
“The truck got here barreling in simply as I stepped ahead to assist a buyer checking radishes,” a vendor mentioned. “If I had stayed the place I used to be, I might have died. Later, I advised her how grateful I used to be.”
With police attributing the crash to driver error by the 67-year-old behind the wheel, the incident has revived debate over tightening laws for older motorists, a dialogue that has flared anew after a sequence of deadly accidents.
Final July, a 68-year-old driver struck pedestrians close to Seoul Metropolis Corridor, killing 9 and injuring 5. He claimed unintended acceleration, however an appeals courtroom in August rejected the argument and sentenced him to 5 years in jail.
The same incident occurred final December, when a 74-year-old man drove into a standard market in Yangcheon District, southwestern Seoul, killing one and injuring 12.
Police examine the scene the place a 68-year-old driver plowed onto a sidewalk close to Seoul Metropolis Corridor, killing 9 folks and injuring 5, July 1, 2024. Korea Occasions photograph by Lee Han-ho.
These circumstances underscore a broader pattern: Each the variety of drivers 65 and older and the accidents involving them have continued to rise.
Visitors accidents by this group rose 36 %, from roughly 31,000 in 2020 to greater than 42,000 in 2024, based on the Korea Street Visitors Authority. Throughout the identical interval, their share of all crashes rose from 14.8 % to 21.6 % — the best since information started in 2005.
As of final yr, the group numbered 5.17 million — a 126 % improve since 2015, based on the Nationwide Meeting Funds Workplace. Over the identical interval, their share amongst all licensed drivers doubled from 7.6 % to 14.9 %, with the whole projected to hit 9.83 million by 2050.
Korea’s efforts to cut back age-related crashes largely fall into two tracks: tighter oversight throughout license renewal and assist for seniors who quit their licenses.
For Class 2 licenses, drivers 65 and older should renew each 5 years, and people 75 and older each three. Drivers 70 and above should additionally bear periodic aptitude assessments, whereas these 75 and older are required to finish dementia screenings.
Seniors who give up their licenses can obtain 100,000 to 500,000 received ($69–$344), relying on the municipality. This system started in Busan in 2018 and has since expanded nationwide.
Particles is scattered at Jeil Market in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, after a truck pushed by a 67-year-old man crashed into pedestrians, killing two folks and injuring 19 others, Thursday. Yonhap
Nonetheless, the coverage’s impression is restricted, with solely 2.2 % giving up their licenses final yr as incentives fall brief.
A 2019 survey by the Korea Rural Financial Institute discovered that 94.8 % of farmers 65 and older mentioned they’d not quit their licenses, citing no well being issues or an absence of transportation alternate options.
Different international locations even have measures to curb high-risk driving amongst older folks.
In Japan, drivers 75 and older obtain subsidies to purchase automobiles outfitted with superior driver-assistance methods or so as to add the expertise to their present autos. These in that age group who give up their licenses can get taxi reductions, and cognitive assessments are required for renewal.
In america, insurance policies differ by state however typically embrace shorter license renewal cycles, stricter imaginative and prescient assessments and necessary in-person renewals to raised oversee aged drivers.
Consultants say Korea ought to increase assist for older drivers who quit their licenses whereas additionally offering tailor-made help for individuals who depend upon their automobiles.
Choi Jae-won, a professor on the Korea Street Visitors Authority, mentioned one-time incentives for seniors who give up their licenses must be strengthened and made steady to deal with the low return charge.
Choi added that increasing demand-responsive transit, which detours to choose up callers between mounted stops and has reported robust ends in Busan’s Gijang County and Gangseo District, may very well be an efficient coverage.
“For older residents in rural areas, not driving can imply they’ll’t even purchase fundamental requirements like a roll of bathroom paper,” Choi mentioned, stressing that insurance policies should account for his or her wants.
