韩国推出手机低头族专用警示牌 避免发生交通事故

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.

韩国是全球智能手机渗透率最高的国家之一。随着与智能手机相关的交通事故数量攀升，韩国已着手采取行动，警示行人在路上沉迷于手机的风险。

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.

首尔市政府上周开始在5个地点的街道沿线及人行道路面上设立标识，警示市民边走边使用智能手机的安全隐患。这5个地点为市政厅、弘益大学、延世大学、江南地铁站以及蚕室地铁站的周边。

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

不过，到目前为止，只有比较少的过路人似乎注意到了这一标识，提出了对这一措施的有效性的疑问。

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岁的上班族就表示：“我已经注意到了人行道上的这一标识。但是说实话，大多数在街上盯着自己手机的人是不会看到这些的。”

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.

根据韩国运输安全管理局的调查数据显示，由使用智能手机引起的交通事故的数量相比2009年的437例已经增加了一倍多，在2014年时达到了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个月试行阶段期间，首尔市政府将设立300个警示标。

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

之后，首尔市政府将与韩国国家警察厅讨论是否正式将此类警示标纳入保障交通安全的必要措施。