Shared personal mobility devices left abndonded pose risks of safety and inconvenience

[Anchor]

Recently, abandoned shared bicycles and electric scooters have become a headache in urban areas.

There are many instances where they are parked in no-parking zones, but collecting them is also not easy.

They not only obstruct pedestrian traffic but also pose safety risks.

Reporter Shin Soo-bin has covered the situation.

[Report]

In front of the subway station entrance!

In a children's protection zone!

On the traffic island at an intersection!

On the entrance to a crosswalk!

Even on the tactile paving for the visually impaired!

Shared bicycles and electric scooters are blatantly abandoned in areas designated as no-parking zones by ordinance.

Users are not returning them to designated spots after use, and the collection is not happening in a timely manner, leading citizens to complain about the inconvenience.

[Kim Dong-ha/Seongdong-gu, Seoul : "It doesn't look good aesthetically, and it definitely obstructs the path when walking, so I think it's a nuisance."]

Leaving them abandoned in apartment complexes, residential areas, and in front of stores also threatens pedestrian safety.

[Park Mi-hee/Mapo-gu, Seoul : "They are scattered all over the place. In fact, there have been cases where children bump into them and fall."]

As citizens continue to express their discomfort, local governments are operating reporting systems.

They have opened social media sharing and chat rooms involving the shared mobility companies, where citizens can report illegal parking, and collection actions are taken accordingly.

However, complaints from citizens persist, such as "I reported it yesterday, but they still haven't picked it up today," and "What improvement can we expect just by reporting?"

Seoul city's public shared bicycle showed less illegal parking due to its designated rental and return locations.

With private company shared electric bicycles, towing is not even an option.

This is because unlike electric scooters, bicycles are not subject to towing under the 'Bicycle Utilization Promotion Act.

In the case of electric scooters, local governments are increasing parking facilities to reduce pedestrian inconvenience, but it is still insufficient.

Nevertheless, private companies remain passive in expanding parking facilities.

They claim to charge towing fees or storage fees to users who park illegally, or to restrict their use. But there are criticisms that these measures are ineffective.

[Han Sang-jin/Professor, Environmental College, Seoul National University/Transportation Department : "I think it is necessary to impose penalties on companies for PMs (personal mobility devices) or bicycles parked in inappropriate places. It is also important for them to actively find and share locations of where parking is allowed."]

While there are related bills proposed in the National Assembly, there are increasing calls for proactive system improvements to prevent citizen inconvenience, as well as for users to show consideration for pedestrian safety.

This is KBS News, Shin Soo-bin.