Road signs in South Korea

Road signs in South Korea are regulated by the Korean Road Traffic Authority (Korean: 도로교통안전공단).

Signs indicating dangers are triangular with a red border, yellow background and black pictograms. Mandatory instructions are white on a blue background, prohibitions are black on a white background with a red border, and supplementary information signs are rectangular with black text on a white background. Like other countries, the signs use pictograms to display their meaning. Any text included in signs will normally be in Korean and English. Signs are normally placed 1 to 2.1 meters high.^[1]

South Korean road signs depict people with realistic (as opposed to stylized) silhouettes.

Road signs in South Korea closely followed Japanese and European rules on road signs until the 1970s.

South Korea signed the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals on December 29, 1969, but has yet to ratify the Convention.^[2]

Signs standard[edit]

Road signs color[edit]

Road surface marking color[edit]

Warning signs[edit]

Warning signs are triangular with yellow backgrounds, red borders and black pictograms.

• 
  Crossroad
• 
  T-shaped intersection
• 
  Y-shaped intersection
• 
  Intersection to right
• 
  Intersection to left
• 
  Priority junction
• 
  Traffic merge from right
• 
  Traffic merge from left
• 
  Traffic circle / Roundabout
• 
  Railway crossing
• 
  Trams crossing
• 
  Right curve
• 
  Left curve
• 
  Double bend, the first to the right
• 
  Double bend, the first to the left
• 
  Two-way traffic
• 
  Ascending hill (10%)
• 
  Descending hill (10%)
• 
  Narrow carriageway
• 
  Right lane decrease / End of right crawler lane
• 
  Left lane decrease / End of left crawler lane
• 
  Keep right
• 
  Pass left or right
• 
  Start of dual carriageway
• 
  End of dual carriageway
• 
  Traffic lights
• 
  Slippery road
• 
  Riverside road (quayside or river bank)
• 
  Bumpy road
• 
  Speed humps
• 
  Falling rocks
• 
  Crosswalk (pedestrian crossing)
• 
  Children crossing
• 
  Bicycles
• 
  Roadworks
• 
  Airplanes
• 
  Crosswind
• 
  Tunnel
• 
  Bridge
• 
  Wild animals crossing
• 
  Other dangers
• 
  Traffic queues

Prohibition signs[edit]

Prohibition signs are round with white backgrounds, red borders and black pictograms.

• 
  Road closed
• 
  No motor vehicles
• 
  No trucks
• 
  No buses
• 
  No motorcycles and mopeds
• 
  No personal mobility devices
• 
  No motor vehicles, motorcycles and mopeds
• 
  No rotary tillers, tractors or handcarts
• 
  No bicycles
• 
  No entry
• 
  No straight ahead
• 
  No right turn
• 
  No left turn
• 
  No U-turn
• 
  No overtaking
• 
  No stopping or parking
• 
  No parking
• 
  Maximum weight limit (5.5t)
• 
  Height limit (3.5m)
• 
  Maximum width limit (2.2m)
• 
  Minimum safe distance between vehicles (50m)
• 
  Maximum speed limit (50km/h)
• 
  Minimum speed limit (30km/h)
• 
  Slow
• 
  Stop
• 
  Yield
• 
  No pedestrians
• 
  No vehicles carrying dangerous substances / explosives

Mandatory instruction signs[edit]

Mandatory instruction signs are round with blue backgrounds and white pictograms.

• 
  Motor Vehicles Only
• 
  Bicycles Only
• 
  Bicycles and Pedestrians Only
• 
  Trams Only
• 
  Traffic circle / Roundabout
• 
  Straight
• 
  Right Turn
• 
  Left Turn
• 
  Straight and Right Turn
• 
  Straight and Left Turn
• 
  Left Turn and Right Turn
• 
  U-Turn
• 
  Pass Left or Right
• 
  Pass Right
• 
  Pass Left
• 
  Follow Directions
• 
  Diversion / Detour
• 
  Parking Lot
• 
  Bicycle Parking Lot
• 
  Pedestrians Only
• 
  Crosswalk (Pedestrian crossing)
• 
  Senior citizens crossing (In the Silver zone)
• 
  Children crossing (In the School zone)
• 
  Bicycles Crossing
• 
  One Way
• 
  One Way
• 
  One Way
• 
  Bus only Lane
• 
  Tram only Lane
• 
  HOV Lane
• 
  The traffic moving in the direction of the white arrow is given priority
• 
  Allow bicycle side-by-side

Supplementary signs[edit]

Supplementary signs are rectangular with white backgrounds and black text. Most of signs are only written in Korean.

• 
  District (Whole Downtown)
• 
  Date (Except for Sunday and Holidays)
• 
  Time
• 
  Time (You can park here within 1 hour)
• 
  Traffic light status (When the red light turned on)
• 
  Front through road
• 
  Safe speed (30 km/h)
• 
  Weather condition (foggy area)
• 
  Road condition (when snow or rain falls)
• 
  Traffic control (get in lane)
• 
  Traffic regulation (do not cross)
• 
  Vehicles limitation (only for sedans)
• 
  Sign explanation (tunnel length is 258m)
• 
  End
• 
  Tow-away zone

Direction and distance signs[edit]

Direction and distance signs are rectangular with dark green backgrounds and white text. In urban areas, direction signs have dark blue backgrounds. The signs are normally written in Korean and English. In March 2010, Korea Expressway Corporation introduced a new technique of direction signing for expressways.^[3] This new system focuses on providing signs featuring destinations reached from an exit, rather than those reached by remaining on the mainline. Notably, the Korean typeface has changed from Sandol Doropyojipanche (Sandol traffic sign typeface, which can be seen on the distance sign and direction sign below) to Hangilche (Hangil typeface), and the Panno has been introduced for Latin text.

• 
  Motorway
• 
  End of motorway
• 
  Motorways end point announcement sign

• 
  Distance sign
• 
  Direction sign (with name of junction)
• 
  New expressway direction sign (introduced in early 2010)

Obsolete signs[edit]

• 
  Priority junction
• 
  Standing water splashes (Deleted on September 28, 2007)
• 
  Bicycles
• 
  No entry
• 
  No crossing traffic (Deleted on September 28, 2007)
• 
  No stopping or parking
• 
  No parking
• 
  Stop
• 
  No tractors or rotary tillers
• 
  No oxcarts or horse-drawn carts
• 
  No handcarts
• 
  No horn
• 
  No pedestrian crossing
• 
  No pedestrians
• 
  Motor Vehicles Only
• 
  Mandatory use of snow tires or chains (Deleted on September 28, 2007)
• 
  Safety zone
• 
  Safety zone (Deleted on September 28, 2007)
• 
  Crosswalk (Pedestrian crossing)
• 
  Honk horn
• 
  End
• 
  End

Other signs[edit]

• 
  Asian Highway route shield
• 
  Expressway route shield
• 
  National Highway route shield
• 
  Local highway route shield
• 
  Urban Road route shield
• 
  Urban expressway route shield

Road surface marking[edit]

• 
  Center Line
• 
  U-turn
• 
  Lanes
• 
  Bus-only lane
• 
  Tram-only lane
• 
  Border
• 
  No Lane Change
• 
  Lane Change2
• 
  Lane Change3
• 
  Obstacle 1
• 
  Obstacle 2
• 
  No turn right
• 
  No turn left
• 
  512 No straight ahead
• 
  No turn left and right
• 
  No U-turn
• 
  No parking
• 
  No stop and parking
• 
  Speed limit
• 
  Speed limit children (30km/h)
• 
  Slow down
• 
  Slow no parking
• 
  Stop
• 
  Yield
• 
  Parking parallel
• 
  Parking rectangular
• 
  Parking diagonal
• 
  No standing zone
• 
  Roundabout line
• 
  Roundabout intersection
• 
  Roundabout 4 direction
• 
  Roundabout 2 direction
• 
  Crosswalk ahead
• 
  Stop line
• 
  Safety zone
• 
  Crosswalk
• 
  Crosswalk 2
• 
  Bicycle cross
• 
  Bicycle-only lane
• 
  School ahead
• 
  Proceeding direction
• 
  Proceeding direction 2
• 
  Proceeding direction 3
• 
  Proceeding direction local
• 
  Proceeding right local
• 
  Left turn no signal
• 
  Change lane
• 
  Up hill

Photographs[edit]

Warning signs[edit]

• 
  Roundabout
• 
  Traffic light
• 
  Slippery road
• 
  Quay or riverbank
• 
  Speed bump
• 
  Speed bump
• 
  Crosswalk
• 
  Road works

Prohibition signs[edit]

• 
  No trucks over 15 tonnes permitted
• 
  Buses prohibited
• 
  Do Not Enter
• 
  No Parking
• 
  Maximum Speed Limit (30km/h)
• 
  Maximum Speed Limit (40km/h)
• 
  Maximum Speed Limit (60km/h)
• 
  Maximum Speed Limit (80km/h)
• 
  Do Not Use Horn
• 
  Slow down
• 
  Yield sign

Mandatory instruction sign[edit]

• 
  Motor vehicles only
• 
  Crosswalk
• 
  Crosswalk
• 
  Crosswalk
• 
  Bicycle Crossing
• 
  Bicycle Crossing
• 
  Bicycle Crossing
• 
  One Way
• 
  One Way

2 or more signs[edit]

• 
  No trucks over 40 tonnes permitted
• 
  Do Not use horn
• 
  No Parking, Tow Away Zone
• 
  Motor vehicles only sign with a no motorcycles sign below.
• 
  Motor vehicles only with a no motorcycles sign below.
• 
  Motor vehicles only with no a motorcycles sign
• 
  School crosswalk
• 
  100 metre advance warning of a school crosswalk

More[edit]

• 
  Slow electric vehicles (NEVs) prohibited
• 
  Traffic Safety Enlightenment Sign (Speed Risk)
• 
  High Expressway 100 Sign with a Motorway ends sign below
• 
  Various Traffic Signs in front of an elementary School
• 
  Traffic Signs display in front of an elementary school

Characteristics[edit]

Traffic signs in Korea shall be designated as traffic signs on the traffic sign schedule;^[4][5] the actual design of traffic signs installed is often different.

See also[edit]

• Road transport in South Korea

References[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Road signs in South Korea.