they are known as smartphone zombies or "smombies"- pedestrians so fixated on their mobile phones that they risk injury as they saunter alongoblivious to the world around them. they, i say, but it could be you, it couldbe me - i cannot say i come clean here. all around the world, we're seeing a growingnumber of road accidents caused by -we've coined a term - "text walking."
Seoul City Hall, smartphone zombies or smombies roaming thestreets - our news feature tonight with oh sooyoung. more often than not,... you can spot pedestriansstumbling aimlessly along the road, their eyes transfixed by their smartphone screens.
a survey shows that most koreans use theirsmartphones at least once a day as they walk down the street, listening to music, watchingvideos or sending text messages. oblivious to their surroundings, these so-calledsmartphone zombies, or "smombies," disturb the flow of traffic and even put their livesat risk. "i listen to music or play games while i'mwalking so that i don't get bored. i often get surprised by cars going by andhave to step aside." "it throws us off completely. they just walk across the street ignoringthe lights. if we don't spot them in time, we would endup in an accident."
data shows the number of pedestrian accidentscaused by smartphone usage has more than doubled in the last five years. medical experts say staring down at a screennarrows a person's field of vision from roughly 120 degrees horizontally to just 20 degrees. it's the same for one's vertical span of vision. "we can normally see 60 to 70 degrees vertically,but when we look at our smartphones, we tilt our heads 40 to 50 degrees down, so that onlyleaves us with just about ten degrees in terms of what we take in." it's not just vision that's affected whenit comes to perceiving one's surroundings.
hearing is also affected, heightening levelsof danger at complicated crossings even more. "for those listening to music, their abilityto hear the horn drops by more than 80 percent, which heightens the risk of an accident. in roads without sidewalks and at crossingswhere cars make a right turn, if pedestrians appear out of nowhere or cross too slowly,there's a high chance of a collision." it's not just korea that's seeing distractedsmartphone users bringing danger to the streets -- it's a global phenomeon. to curb the number of "smombies" walking intoaccidents, the state of new jersey in the u.s. fines pedestrians 85 dollars for textingwhile walking.
in the city of chongqing in china, there areseparate lanes for smartphone users,... and in augsburg, germany, there are flashing trafficlights on the ground. korea is also making efforts to curb the numberof "smombies" walking into accidents. the city of seoul is carrying out a pilotproject in five busy districts, including city hall, gangnam station and the hongdaearea. signposts are being installed to urge pedestriansto be cautious while using their phones. there are also warning signs dotted on theground. "here, the sign is on the edge of the sidewalk,so that it catches the attention of pedestrians before they cross the street."
experts say korea is still in the early stagesof tackling the issue. there's a need to expand safety campaignsand infrastructure to help prevent smartphone-related accidents, but what's fundamental is raisingpublic awareness, especially among children and adolescents. "there haven't been any regulations, nor hasthere been any form of educational outreach so far on the dangers of pedestrians usingsmartphones. i believe education is needed, especiallyfor students in middle and high school as well as university who commonly use theirphones on the streets." as they work on practical solutions, publicauthorities are, in the meantime, advising
drivers to be extra cautious and urging pedestriansto keep their heads up and their eyes firmly ahead. oh soo-young, arirang news.
they are known as smartphone zombies or "smombies"- pedestrians so fixated on their mobile phones that they risk injury as they saunter alongoblivious to the world around them. they, i say, but it could be you, it couldbe me - i cannot say i come clean here. all around the world, we're seeing a growingnumber of road accidents caused by -we've coined a term - "text walking."
Seoul City Hall, smartphone zombies or smombies roaming thestreets - our news feature tonight with oh sooyoung. more often than not,... you can spot pedestriansstumbling aimlessly along the road, their eyes transfixed by their smartphone screens.
a survey shows that most koreans use theirsmartphones at least once a day as they walk down the street, listening to music, watchingvideos or sending text messages. oblivious to their surroundings, these so-calledsmartphone zombies, or "smombies," disturb the flow of traffic and even put their livesat risk. "i listen to music or play games while i'mwalking so that i don't get bored. i often get surprised by cars going by andhave to step aside." "it throws us off completely. they just walk across the street ignoringthe lights. if we don't spot them in time, we would endup in an accident."
data shows the number of pedestrian accidentscaused by smartphone usage has more than doubled in the last five years. medical experts say staring down at a screennarrows a person's field of vision from roughly 120 degrees horizontally to just 20 degrees. it's the same for one's vertical span of vision. "we can normally see 60 to 70 degrees vertically,but when we look at our smartphones, we tilt our heads 40 to 50 degrees down, so that onlyleaves us with just about ten degrees in terms of what we take in." it's not just vision that's affected whenit comes to perceiving one's surroundings.
hearing is also affected, heightening levelsof danger at complicated crossings even more. "for those listening to music, their abilityto hear the horn drops by more than 80 percent, which heightens the risk of an accident. in roads without sidewalks and at crossingswhere cars make a right turn, if pedestrians appear out of nowhere or cross too slowly,there's a high chance of a collision." it's not just korea that's seeing distractedsmartphone users bringing danger to the streets -- it's a global phenomeon. to curb the number of "smombies" walking intoaccidents, the state of new jersey in the u.s. fines pedestrians 85 dollars for textingwhile walking.
in the city of chongqing in china, there areseparate lanes for smartphone users,... and in augsburg, germany, there are flashing trafficlights on the ground. korea is also making efforts to curb the numberof "smombies" walking into accidents. the city of seoul is carrying out a pilotproject in five busy districts, including city hall, gangnam station and the hongdaearea. signposts are being installed to urge pedestriansto be cautious while using their phones. there are also warning signs dotted on theground. "here, the sign is on the edge of the sidewalk,so that it catches the attention of pedestrians before they cross the street."
experts say korea is still in the early stagesof tackling the issue. there's a need to expand safety campaignsand infrastructure to help prevent smartphone-related accidents, but what's fundamental is raisingpublic awareness, especially among children and adolescents. "there haven't been any regulations, nor hasthere been any form of educational outreach so far on the dangers of pedestrians usingsmartphones. i believe education is needed, especiallyfor students in middle and high school as well as university who commonly use theirphones on the streets." as they work on practical solutions, publicauthorities are, in the meantime, advising
drivers to be extra cautious and urging pedestriansto keep their heads up and their eyes firmly ahead. oh soo-young, arirang news.