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Some of roads reserved for bicycles and pedestrian were found to have concerns over safety accidents due to road damage such as road crack.
The Korea Consumer Agency (President: Kim Young-seen, www.kca.go.kr) conducted a study on safety of 12 roads reserved for bicycles and pedestrian in Metropolitan areas (Seoul, Gyeonggi-do, and Incheon). The survey found that nine (75%) of them posed a risk of injury to bicycle riders and pedestrians as road surface remained broken. Meanwhile eight (66.6%) of them had concerns over a possible hazard of obstructing passing or bicycle damage as surface of which was uneven or pavement and drainage maintenance was insufficient. According to the survey, 23% of the respondents, who said they got injured while using road and lane for bicycle, blamed road surface failure for the cause of the incident.
Also, there were many cases where the way to bicycle riders was impeded by obstructions on the bicycle pedestrian combination road. Passage of bicycles were obstructed by parking or stopping automobiles on the nine (75%) of those surveyed, while road width or connectivity of road was drastically reduced on the seven (58.3%) due to bus stop or outdoor bulletin board for advertising.
Meanwhile, 179 accidents occurred on roads and lanes for bicycles were reported to the Consumer Injury Surveillance System (CISS) of the KCA from 2009 to 1st half of 2011. By age, 24.6% (44 cases) were children under 10. And, by wound area, head and face (38.2%, 58 cases) were among the most frequent type of incidents.
Based on these findings, the KCA is going to make a proposal to reinforce installation of safety signs that clearly divide passage areas for bicycle riders and pedestrians as well as introduce substantial safety check for the bicycle roads and lanes. Meanwhile, the Agency asked bicycle riders to follow safety guidelines including wearing safety gears.
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Tips for Safe Use of Road Reserved for Bicycles and Pedestrian
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▮ When choosing a bicycle, one must consider whether it is comfortable and safe and fits the size of the body type of the rider.
▮ Before riding a bicycle, one must check handle, saddle, tire, brake, and air pressure of tire in advance.
▮ One must wear protective gear such as helmet.
▮ One must not wear long clothes or accessories that can get caught easily in chains, tires, and pedals.
▮ One must use a taillight or reflective light when it rains or snows or at night.
▮ One must not ride a bicycle under influence or when tired with hard work.
▮ One must observe a traffic signs and signal when using a bikeway.
▮ One must carefully look obstacles such as parked cars on the road and try to stay within the road.
▮ When passing through around car parked or stopped on the bikeway, one must keep distance between the car and the bike and be careful of a door that can be open towards the rider.
▮ When crossing crosswalk without bicycle crossing, one must get off a bicycle and walk it over the crosswalk.
▮ One must not ride a bike too fast. Particularly when riding a bike on a road reserved for both bicycles and pedestrians, one must be careful not to obstruct passage of the pedestrians.
▮ One must stop a bike at a street corner, a crossroad without a traffic signal, and an alley , check safety and then proceed along the road.
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Date of News Report Release : Sept. 7th, 2011
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