S. Korea to inspect all large buses, trucks for safety

SEOUL, Aug. 23 (Yonhap) — All new commercial trucks and buses will be required to have an automatic braking system starting next year, while all existing large vehicles and their operators will be checked for safety, the government said Tuesday.

The government plans to inspect all 819 shipping and transportation service companies with more than 50 trucks or buses before the year’s end, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

An additional 2,030 such firms with more than 20 but fewer than 50 vehicles will be subject to the special inspection before the end of 2017, while the remaining 6,660 firms with fewer than 20 cars will also be checked for safety starting in 2018.

The move follows a tragic accident in July when a large commercial bus rammed through a slowing passenger car on an expressway in Gangwon Province and ran into a series of cars in front, killing four people while seriously injuring 17 others.

Police investigations later suggested the driver of the bus may have dozed off due to a lack of sleep or rest while working long hours.

This file photo, taken on July 17, 2016, shows the site of a tragic accident on an expressway in Gangwon Province, South Korea, where a tourist bus smashed into vehicles in front, killing four people and injuring 17 others.

The government plans to add a new regulation that will require minimum hours of rest after each shift for commercial vehicle drivers, in addition to the existing regulation that requires a short break after every two hours of driving, the ministry said in a press release.

Also, all new commercial trucks and buses produced after 2017 will be required to be equipped with an autonomous emergency braking system and a lane departure warning system, both of which are designed to help prevent accidents.

The government will also check police records for speeding and have the vehicles with previous records checked to see if they have illegally removed their speed limiters.

To ensure adequate rest for drivers, the government will expand the number and size of rest areas on major expressways.

“The government will do its utmost to implement the new safety measures and make sure no tragic loss of a life is ever repeated,” the ministry said.