Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Chamchiman]

The first time I drove in Korea I blew through a bunch of radar camera zones without noticing them. After all, with the cars flying by you at 170 (on the right) and others going 80 (on the left), there's a lot to pay attention to.

Anyway, when I returned the car to the rental agency, I told the guy I'd probably be getting a ticket or two. He said not to worry about it because "they don't give radar camera tickets to foreigners who rent cars in Korea".

Since then I've rented a car a half a dozen times or so. I'm POSITIVE that I've sped past radar cameras in that time - they're particularly hard to notice at night when you've got to really pay attention to the traffic. I still try to slow down when I see them, despite what the car rental guy said, because I'll be buying a car in the future and don't want to get into the habit of speeding past the cameras. However, I'm sure I've qualified for at least a few tickets by now.

I suppose it's not good for tourism to hit up every visitor to Korea with a pricey speeding ticket, but how about those of you who actually own cars? Surely they�ve gotten some of you� How much of a hit was it? Does it depend on how far over the limit you're going? I also had a Korean guy tell me they can only hit you once per day, so if you know you've already been busted, speed away! True?

[b-class rambler]

That might be true about foreigners renting cars not getting tickets. I'm sure I went past some cameras well over the speed limit when I've driven rented cars here and I never heard anything. If you're in your first year in Korea and are driving on an IDP, I'd be pretty sure you'd be ok. Driving a rented car on a Korean licence, I'd be a bit more careful.

Since I've owned a car here I've had one speeding ticket. That was on the Busan - Daegu expressway when the camera caught me doing 126 in a 110. For up to 20km/h over the speed limit it's a W40,000 fine but no penalty points on your license. More than 20km/h over and the fine is bigger and your license IS endorsed.

The camera that caught me wasn't a fixed one, it was one of these 이동식 cameras. I didn't see it at the time, but I'm sure it was in the central lay-by area just before the entrance to a tunnel. This is quite a popular place for the police to set up cameras and I've seen them in similar spots just before a tunnel on the Seoul Ring Expressway a few times.

Speed cameras are the main reason I use my sat nav. I tend not to get lost and I prefer a proper map when planning a trip somewhere new. But sat nav's warnings of cameras ahead are pretty invaluable. You do need to make sure you update it regularly though as they change camera locations quite a lot.

[jvalmer]

I've been told that about 20% of those cameras actually have cameras in them. The highway patrol guys switch them off every so often though. So, you don't really know if one has one or not.

[bluelake]

This sure dredges up memories...

About sixteen years ago, I knew a local police lieutenant and he told me which cameras at the time were operational (that was before they were common in Korea). At that time, few actually had cameras in them and, sometime later, a TV news magazine did a program on them and even opened up a camera box to show it was empty (the police were a bit miffed from what I remember).

Probably ten or more years ago, my wife and I were driving in an area I knew well, and also knew where all the cameras were. On that day, traffic was going slow in that area, due to road construction in one lane; everyone was going one speed and it was way below the limit. A week or so later, I received a ticket for doing over 90! My wife and I both squawked at that one. We went to the police station to complain and spent about three hours there. I asked them when the camera was last calibrated, because in the States (where their cameras were made at the time) they must be periodically calibrated or else the results are not valid in court. They showed me the certificate for the camera, which said the camera was two years old and had never been calibrated.

They finally said I had to go see a judge if I wanted to have the ticket expunged. I went to the judges office and was made to wait on a bench next to a guy in handcuffs; people walking by looked at me like they wondered why I wasn't cuffed... In any case, when it was my turn, I was directed by the judge's secretary to stand behind a white line in his office and to not speak unless spoken to. I did. The judge didn't even look at me; he just kept writing something at his desk. Finally he asked (still without looking up) to briefly state why I was there, which I did. After I finished, he said, "The camera said you were speeding, so you were speeding. If you wish to contest my ruling, you have to appear in court. However, I will be the presiding judge. The fine is 80,000 won; if you don't pay it immediately, I will increase it to 100,000 won and more each week." Needless to say, I "made a donation" to the city...

My second ticket was on the road between Gyeongju and Pohang back in 2005. Again, I knew where all the cameras were (even 이동), and I always kept my speed at no more than 80kph. However, because of my experience the time before, I just paid it.

Did you ever notice that one type resembles Johnny-5 out of the movie Short Circuit?

[b-class rambler]

[Chamchiman]

Thanks for the stories and the tips. I've seen the cops set up near tunnels before - that seems a good place to slow down. But like I said before, it's awfully tough to keep an eye out for everything, especially on the big expressways. It's a jungle out there - no empty, open roads like back home, with sixty miles to the nearest police station.

[b-class rambler]

[NightSky]

got one last week for doing 128 in a 110 zone. oops.

I think they may only catch you at 10 over, I regularly only slow down to about 10 or 5 over and have never gotten ticketed for that.

the back of the ticket says, if you are under 20 over, it's 30,000 won fine and no points. Between 20-40: 60,000 won and 15 points. Over 40: 90,000 won and 30 points.

[Mr. Pink]

I got one once. I feel that it was a stupid way to entrap me too. I used to drive on this road every week or so. It was an 80 zone for years. Then they changed it to a 70 zone but didn't put up new signs. Instead they just erased the 80 from the road but didn't put any new numbers up. If it was in Canada, I could have easily won it because I was going 80 and it used to be an 80 zone. They sent me a ticket for 10KM over the limit.

Stationary photo radar are usually a joke as everyone knows how to play the game.

When I went to pay the ticket the cop looked really surprised to see me, a foreigner wanting to pay the ticket.

[Hyeon Een]

Foreigners definitely have to pay. If you're driving a car that isn't registered in your name (for example if you bought it off of a foreigner who left the country and never switched the registration over) then you're golden. If not, then you can and will get busted.

I've got speeding tickets both in my car, and hired cars. You can't sell your car and transfer the ownership over if you have unpaid speeding or parking tickets either.

[GwangjuParents]

Do those speed cameras work well at night?

It's funny I'm sure I've gone through many of them over the limit and never got a ticket. Maybe I'm just lucky.

[Bibbitybop]

Question: If I borrow a friend's car and get a ticket, but the friend can prove he/she is out of the country when the violation occurs, what happens?

[b-class rambler]

[Confused Canadian]

Not sure if this is still the case, but years ago (2002??), a Korean co-teacher got a ticket from a speed camera. She informed us that she could go in person, pay the fine, and have points deducted from her license, OR, she could mail the fine in, pay a little more, and NOT have points deducted from her license, as there was no way to prove who was driving the car this way.

Basically, by paying the fine in person, you were admitting guilt. By mailing in the fine, you were admitting 'someone' in your car was speeding, but not admitting who.

[bassexpander]

The one time I got a ticket (6 months ago) I turned into a bus lane too early. It was during a crackdown. The ticket I got in the mail had a photo that was easy to distinguish as me driving.