Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Bok Ki-wang [provided by the lawmaker's office]
Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Bok Ki-wang [provided by the lawmaker's office]

Only 2 in 100 elderly drivers voluntarily surrendered their licenses last year, according to a new analysis.

Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Bok Ki-wang, floor coordinator on the National Assembly's Land and Transportation Committee and representative for Asan in South Chungcheong Province, said Wednesday that his analysis of data from the Korean National Police Agency and the National Assembly Research Service showed the number of licensed drivers aged 65 and older jumped 40.2 percent over the past five years — from about 4.01 million in 2021 to about 5.63 million in 2025 — while the total number of licensed drivers grew just 3.6 percent over the same period. The growth rate among elderly drivers was more than 11 times the overall rate.

Over the same period, total traffic accidents fell 4.5 percent, from 203,130 to 193,889 cases. Yet the share of accidents caused by elderly drivers rose 8.0 percentage points, from 15.7 percent to 23.7 percent — meaning elderly drivers account for a growing proportion of road incidents even as overall accidents decline.

The government has encouraged elderly drivers to voluntarily surrender their licenses since 2018, but the surrender rate has remained stuck in the 2 percent range for five consecutive years. Last year it stood at 2.51 percent — roughly two to three drivers out of every 100.

Research points to a clear reason for the low surrender rate: for many elderly drivers, a license is a livelihood. A survey by the Korea Rural Economic Institute found that 94.8 percent of licensed farmers aged 65 and older had no intention of surrendering their licenses, citing the need to drive for work and the difficulty of using public transportation.

The transportation industry tells a similar story. As of late 2024, about 205,846 of the 814,737 people employed in the sector — roughly 25 percent — were drivers aged 65 or older, for whom surrendering a license means losing their income. Local governments offer surrender incentives of 100,000 to 500,000 won ($68 to $337), but that falls far short of compensating for the loss of a livelihood.

What is needed, Bok said, is not higher surrender rates but a way to reduce risk for those who continue to drive.

Other countries have already institutionalized this approach. Japan amended its Road Traffic Act in May 2022 to create a "support-car limited license" system, restricting certain elderly drivers to vehicles equipped with advanced driver-assistance systems, including automatic emergency braking and pedal-misapplication acceleration suppression devices. The idea is that vehicle safety technology can compensate for declining physical ability and prevent serious accidents.

Bok introduced a Road Traffic Act amendment bill in December last year based on the same thinking. The bill would allow drivers aged 75 and older who install pedal-misapplication prevention devices to receive relaxed license renewal and fitness examination schedules in return — offering a practical middle ground between full surrender and unrestricted driving for elderly drivers who cannot afford to give up their licenses.

"It is irresponsible to keep urging surrender without any substantive measures when so many elderly drivers depend on driving for their livelihoods," Bok said. "I urge the committee to swiftly review and pass the Road Traffic Act amendment bill currently pending before it, so that science and technology can protect both the mobility rights of elderly drivers and the safety of the public at the same time."


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