Card News
NEWS
KOTI - Korea Transport institute
Feeds and Updates
Personal Mobility for the Elderly
August 29 2025
-
Personal Mobility for the Elderly
In December 2024, South Korea entered a super-aged society, with people aged 65 and over accounting for more than 20% of the total population.
The Ministry of the Interior and Safety designated 89 out of 226 cities, counties, and districts nationwide as depopulation areas, and 18 as areas of concern, officially acknowledging the risk of local extinction.
Such rapid demographic changes are demanding fundamental shifts in the overall mobility system across the nation.
Shall we now take a look at how personal mobility options suitable for the elderly are spreading both in Korea and abroad, and explore some examples?
1. Yeonggwang County’s e-Mobility Road
“Yeonggwang County’s Exclusive e-Mobility Road – Safety and Vitalization Together”
- The only city in Korea to establish exclusive roads dedicated to personal mobility (e-Mobility)
- Promoting various e-Mobility activation policies to develop into a mobility-centered city
- Broadly defining e-Mobility and building a dedicated road network for its use
2. The United Kingdom’s “Inclusive Mobility” Policy
· Purpose: Guarantee the right to mobility for transportation-vulnerable groups (including persons with disabilities)
· Basic principle: Road user hierarchy → Cars < Motorcycles < Pedestrians (priority protection for vulnerable users)
“Applying wheelchair usage rules differently according to speed and level of risk, with priority given to protecting pedestrians and transportation-vulnerable users”
Class 1: Non-motorized → Use sidewalks, subject to the same laws as pedestrians
Class 2: Motorized, maximum speed ≤ 6 km/h → Use sidewalks, travel with priority given to pedestrians; where sidewalks are absent, road use is allowed
Class 3: Motorized, maximum speed ≤ 12 km/h → Use roadways, subject to the same laws as vehicles; when turning right at intersections, sidewalks may be used “at low speed”
3. Japan’s “Barrier-Free Act”
# What is the “Barrier-Free Act”?
- A law enacted to build an obstacle-free urban environment and transportation infrastructure, and to provide related services.
- Having already entered an aging society in the 1970s, Japan has pursued various transportation policies for the elderly.
- Initially, Japan attempted to improve mobility rights for the elderly by utilizing electric wheelchairs designed for persons with disabilities, but this failed due to road conditions and social perception issues.
- Subsequently, Japan developed and commercialized the “next-generation personal mobility (PM) device for the elderly,” designed to address these shortcomings.
Currently, under the Road Traffic Act and related laws, Japan distinguishes between PMs and electric assistive devices. Electric assistive devices are limited to use by persons with physical disabilities, must travel on sidewalks, and are restricted to a maximum speed of 6 km/h.
4. Germany’s “Small Electric Vehicle Ordinance (eKFV)”
Through the Small Electric Vehicle Ordinance (eKFV), Germany classifies and manages personal light electric vehicles (PLEVs) separately, while other transportation means remain subject to the general Road Traffic Act.
- < Electric wheelchairs> Limited to a maximum speed of 6 km/h, considered an assistive device, and therefore required to travel on sidewalks like pedestrians.
- < Electric scooters, etc.> Classified as PLEVs similar to Korea’s personal mobility (PM) devices, with a maximum speed of up to 20 km/h; use of bicycle lanes or roadways is the principle.
Currently, Korea’s system distinguishes specifications of medical electric assistive devices according to their purpose of use. However, unlike the UK case, Korea has not yet established detailed traffic rules based on speed or performance, which limits effective application on-site.
In this context, the case of Yeonggwang County in Jeollanam-do is noteworthy. By constructing exclusive e-Mobility roads physically separated from roadways, the county has promoted policies to ensure the safety of personal mobility users.
Therefore, expanding the installation of e-Mobility exclusive roads in areas with high demand for electric assistive devices, as in Yeonggwang County, could serve as an effective solution to fundamentally reduce accident risks.
* This card news was produced based on KOTI’s Mobility Brief on Depopulation Areas, Vol.1 No.1, with partial revisions and additions.