By Jung Min-ho

Starting next month, running on escalators at subway stations will be banned to reduce the risk of accidents, the Ministry of Public Safety and Security said Sunday.

Safety officials will warn violators through subway speakers not to run. The ministry also said it is considering imposing fines on those who repeatedly refuse to heed the warning.

The move is part of the "escalator safety guidelines" that the ministry recently finalized on the recommendation of safety experts.

According to the guidelines, everyone on an escalator should stand still and hold the hand rail. However, walking will not be subject to fines.

As a safety measure for older people, the ministry plans to reduce the speed of escalators at some subway stations from 30 meters a minute to 25 meters a minute.

Also, escalators will be cleaned more frequently as a preventive measure against infectious diseases.

Meanwhile, the campaign for "lining up in rows of two for the escalators," which has been promoted since 2007, will be scrapped after the ministry found little evidence between escalator-related accidents and how people line up for them.

In China in July, a woman was killed after she plunged to the floor at an escalator in a department store. Since then, global concerns have been raised over public safety about escalators.

According to the ministry, there were 49 escalator-related accidents in Korea last year. In the first six months of this year, there were 21 accidents.

In many countries, walking or running up and down escalators is discouraged.

A ban was considered for Tokyo's transport system, but has yet to be enforced.