“Dramatic arrival just one minute before the exam began” ... 27-year traffic veteran who protected test-takers’ dreams [Number 112]

[Financial News]“There was a female student who had gone to the wrong exam venue, with only 15 minutes until the exam began. I put her in the patrol car and drove with the siren blaring; we just managed to arrive one minute before the exam started.”Inspector Hyeon Yang-seo (57, pictured) of the Traffic Safety Team 2 at Seoul Seocho Police Station spoke with Financial News on the 10th and named helping a test-taker who had gone to the wrong venue as his most memorable moment ahead of the College Scholastic Ability Test. At the time, a female student arrived at Seoul High School just 15 minutes before the exam began, but her actual test venue was Eunkwang Girls’ High School, about 4 km away. Hyeon put her in his patrol car and drove with the siren blaring, managing to reach the venue just one minute before the exam started.
“It was difficult to cover that distance in 15 minutes, but fortunately I was able to get the student there before she was late,” he recalled.
For the CSAT, which will be held on the 19th, Hyeon will also head out onto the roads early in the morning to help test-takers travel safely. He plans to report for work at around 5:30 a.m., earlier than usual, receive a briefing, and then manage traffic congestion at major intersections and around test venues.
He explained, “Because test-takers and crowds of people cheering them on gather at the main entrances to test venues, we direct vehicles to stop a little farther away,” adding, “If someone has gone to the wrong venue or is at risk of arriving late, we help them get there on a police motorcycle (saika) or in a patrol car.”
Hyeon first put on a police uniform in June 1998. After serving as a noncommissioned officer in the military for five years, he worked a civilian job before choosing a career in the police out of admiration for the uniform. A year after joining the force, he transferred to the traffic division in 1999. Apart from assignments with the riot squad and at a police substation, he has spent most of his police career on the roads. With three years until mandatory retirement, he is now in his 29th year in the police force and his 27th year in traffic work.
After keeping the roads safe for so long, he has faced many dangerous moments. The work frequently puts officers at risk of accidents, as they direct traffic and conduct drunk-driving enforcement on roads full of moving vehicles. Hyeon himself was hit by a bus while on duty when he was an assistant inspector and spent about a month in the hospital. “Quite a few of my colleagues have also been injured in accidents while pursuing vehicles on icy roads in winter,” he said.
Irregular hours are another challenge. In addition to working four rotating day and night shifts, officers are assigned to the field when weekend marathons or various rallies are held. It is common for them to finish work late or cancel plans with their families on days off.
What has kept Hyeon on the traffic beat for 27 years is the warm gratitude expressed by members of the public. One encounter in particular remains an unforgettable memory: he has stayed in touch with one citizen for nearly 10 years.
In 2016, while patrolling at the Yangjae station intersection, Hyeon spotted a white-haired elderly person pushing a broken-down imported car in the middle of the road. He immediately stopped his patrol car and rushed over, then helped the elderly person push the vehicle about 20–30 meters to a safe place. He said he was drenched in sweat from head to toe as they moved the car, but felt rewarded that he had been able to help safely.
“That person was very grateful, saying they had never received help like that from a police officer,” he said. “I gave them my phone number, and they still ask how I’m doing every holiday and tell me to dress warmly when it’s cold. What I remember most is how they look after me like a father.”
Hyeon emphasized that above all, a sense of duty is important for candidates aspiring to become police officers. “Being a police officer can often be lonely and difficult, and it’s not a job where you hear a lot of praise,” he said. “But if you have a sense of duty, it’s a career well worth pursuing.” He added a message of encouragement: “I hope luck is with all the candidates and that they get results that reflect their hard work.”
[email protected] Lee Dong-hyeok Reporter