韓國推出手機低頭族專用警示牌 避免發生交通事故

South Korea, one of the world's top countries in smartphone penetration rate, has started to take steps to warn pedestrians about the risks of being occupied with their gadgets on the street, as the number of smartphone-related traffic accidents is growing.

韓國是全球智能手機滲透率最高的國家之一。隨着與智能手機相關的交通事故數量攀升，韓國已着手採取行動，警示行人在路上沉迷於手機的風險。

The Seoul Metropolitan Government began last week to put up signs along the street and on the pavement at five locations to warn citizens of the dangers of using their smartphones while walking. The locations are near City Hall, Hongik and Yonsei universities, and Gangnam and Jamsil subway stations.

首爾市政府上週開始在5個地點的街道沿線及人行道路面上設立標識，警示市民邊走邊使用智能手機的安全隱患。這5個地點爲市政廳、弘益大學、延世大學、江南地鐵站以及蠶室地鐵站的周邊。

However, few passers-by seem to have noticed the signs so far, raising questions about the effectiveness of the measure.

不過，到目前爲止，只有比較少的過路人似乎注意到了這一標識，提出了對這一措施的有效性的疑問。

A 35-year-old office worker said, "I have noticed the signs on the pavement, but honestly, most people who are peering at their phones on the street aren't going to be able to see them."

一名35歲的上班族就表示：“我已經注意到了人行道上的這一標識。但是說實話，大多數在街上盯着自己手機的人是不會看到這些的。”

According to data compiled by the Korea Transportation Safety Authority, the number of traffic accidents arising from the use of smartphones has more than doubled from 437 cases in 2009 to 1,111 cases in 2014.

根據韓國運輸安全管理局的調查數據顯示，由使用智能手機引起的交通事故的數量相比2009年的437例已經增加了一倍多，在2014年時達到了1111例。

The city government will set up 300 signs during a six month trial period through the end of this year.

截至今年年底的6個月試行階段期間，首爾市政府將設立300個警示標。

Then it will discuss with the National Police Agency whether to officially include such signs as a transportation safety necessity.

之後，首爾市政府將與韓國國家警察廳討論是否正式將此類警示標納入保障交通安全的必要措施。