Sudden Surge in Shared E-Scooters in Jeonju: The Surprising Reason Behind It

[Anchor]

You have likely had a startling experience due to e-scooters left haphazardly on sidewalks or roadsides. It turns out that the number of shared e-scooters in the Jeonju area has nearly doubled in just one year.

JTV reporter Jung Sang-won investigates the reason why.

[Reporter]

An e-scooter stands right in the middle of the sidewalk.

Even though it is a place where scooters should not be parked, it was left there carelessly.

[Jeonju Resident: I have almost bumped into them while walking. I wish they would create designated parking areas or just get rid of them entirely.]

At the end of 2024, Jeonju City identified 3,800 shared e-scooters.

However, a survey conducted at the end of last year showed that the number had increased to about 6,000, nearly doubling.

Where did all these shared e-scooters come from?

Since 2021, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has been immediately towing abandoned shared scooters and charging towing fees to the operating companies.

[Seoul Metropolitan Government Official: In reality, there is no such thing as a grace period in the Road Traffic Act. We say immediate towing, immediate towing, so (originally) it is correct to tow them right away.]

It appears that e-scooter operators have moved their fleets to regional cities to avoid Seoul's strict enforcement. As a result, the number of shared scooters in Seoul is decreasing, while regional cities are seeing a rapid surge.

[Shared E-Scooter Company Official: We are currently focusing our services in Seoul mainly on electric bicycles, and (e-scooters) are being concentrated more in suburban areas.]

Jeonju City has also been towing illegally parked scooters and charging fees since 2024, but the enforcement is weak.

Last year, only 40 scooters were towed, and as of June this year, the number is just 22.

The failure to tow immediately is also a problem.

Jeonju City initially allowed a two-hour grace period before towing, which was reduced to one hour starting last year, but there are calls to eliminate even that.

Jeonju City is only now considering a plan to immediately tow scooters parked in so-called 8 restricted zones, such as crosswalks, school zones, and traffic islands.

[Jeonju City Official: We are internally reviewing a plan to immediately tow scooters in about 8 restricted zones after providing a notice period.]

A more thorough and powerful enforcement system is urgently needed to prevent regional areas from becoming lawless zones for e-scooters.

(Video by Kwon Man-taek, JTV)

Reported by Jung Sang-won, JTV
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.