Completion of Korea Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) Construction Project
Securing Opportunities for Excellent ITS Technology to Enter Latin American Market
Integrated Traffic Information Center based on the Korean-style Intelligent Transportation System (K-ITS) established in Medell?n, Colombia (Photo by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport)
An integrated traffic information center based on the Korean Intelligent Transportation System (K-ITS) has newly opened in Medellin, Colombia.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 23rd that at 10 a.m. local time on the 22nd (12 p.m. Korean time on the 23rd), it successfully completed the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) construction project to improve urban traffic functions in Medellin, Colombia, and opened the integrated traffic information center (CITRA).
Medellin, Colombia was selected as a target for the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's infrastructure ODA (grant aid) project in 2015. Since then, the Ministry invested a total of 13 billion KRW from 2016 to complete the ITS construction project through basic design, detailed design, and construction.
To collect real-time traffic information in Medellin, where traffic congestion is severe, vehicle detectors (VDS) and variable message signs (VMS) were installed on two major arterial routes and connecting roads in the city center.
An integrated traffic information center linking traffic and safety information such as signals, parking, buses, and crime prevention, which were previously operated individually by six different agencies, was established, and it is expected to greatly improve not only traffic congestion but also citizen safety.
Completion ceremony of the Integrated Transportation Information Center in Medell?n, Colombia, based on the Korean Intelligent Transportation System (K-ITS). From the left, Yoon Soon-kyu, Officer at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport; Chu Jong-yeon, Ambassador to Colombia; Daniel Quintero, Mayor of Medell?n, Colombia; Carlos Mejia, Director of Transportation, Medell?n, Colombia. Photo by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport
Daniel Quintero, Mayor of Medellin, said, "I am very pleased on behalf of the 2.5 million citizens of Medellin that the cooperative project between the two countries has borne fruit," adding, "Based on cooperation with Korea, an ITS advanced country, Medellin aims to become the best smart city in South America beyond Colombia."
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport also held an international cooperation meeting attended by neighboring Latin American countries and multilateral development bank officials to establish a foothold for domestic ITS companies to enter the Latin American market.
Key officials from multilateral development banks such as the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), Colombia’s Ministry of Transport, Bogot? city, Medellin city, Manizales city, Peru’s Ministry of Transport and Communications, Arequipa city, and Paraguay’s Ministry of Public Works and Communications attended.
Kim Jong-oh, head of the Digital Road Team at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "It is meaningful to hold the completion ceremony of the Medellin ITS construction project ahead of the 60th anniversary of Korea-Colombia diplomatic relations next year," adding, "We will actively promote and share the successful case of Medellin with surrounding Latin American countries so that Korea’s excellent ITS technology can advance onto the international stage."
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