Korea Hosts 17th ITS World Congress

Ubiquitous Society with ITS, Low Carbon Green Growth main theme of global meeting on transportation in Busan

The 17th ITS World Congress ran from Oct. 25-29 at Bexco in Busan, hosted by the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs (MLTM) and organized by IT Korea, which is led by Chairman Lieu Chull-ho, who is also the president of Korea Expressway Corp.
The annual event, with the theme of “Ubiquitous Society with ITS (Intelligent Transport System” and “Low Carbon and Green Growth” as the sub-theme, was participated in by over 30,000 government officials and people from related industries from over 80 countries with the support of the Busan Metropolitan Government, Korea Expressway Corp. and some 20 other firms in related areas.
The Busan ITS World Congress Organizing Committee said they expected the event to spur the Korean ITS industry further into the global market as a new growth engine for the Korean economy. The gathering is also expected to turn “low-carbon and green growth through ITS” into a national brand for Korea. It should also be a shot in the arm for economic growth in Busan, the largest harbor in Korea.
ITS is defined as improving the safety and effectiveness of the transportation system through scientific management. Navigation, Hi-pass, CCTV, transportation card and TPEG are some of the ITS products that are being used to support the high-tech transportation means.
Some of sample models of ITS are CCTV, which is installed at key points on major expressways around the country to gather real-time information on traffic accidents and cars with problems and send them to electronic boards along highways, car terminals and smart-phones to ensure effective traffic control.
It also provides current information on bus, railroad, and subway stations including the operation schedules for the convenience of users of public transportation.
ITS also enables the payment of various transportation related fees with such electronics means as Hi-pass cards, T-money and others, removing inconveniences and delays in traffic.
ITS also helps make driving easier with automatic warning systems such as if a car goes into another lane when the driver gets sleepy, thereby avoiding a collision. And it helps with automatic parking through automatic sensors and wireless communication technology.
One of the key events at the ITS World Congress is the Ministerial Round Table, which is expanded this year to take up such pertinent issues as the green revolution and transportation policies and visions of each member country in the framework of strengthening international cooperation in the area of transportation. About 20 countries are expected to be represented at the meeting by their ministers or vice ministers in charge of transportation.
The MLTM plans to first set up close relations with foreign countries, as Japan and China have done, through cooperative projects and official aid in order to pave the way for private businesses to advance into ASEAN member countries, thereby grabbing large shares of transportation infrastructure projects in those countries. Minister Chung Jong-hwan is slated to introduce Korea’s ITS policies and the current status of those policies during his welcoming speech. Each minister will also introduce his country’s smart and green transportation cases. The ministers will adopt a Key Message and announce it at the close of the Congress.
The foreign countries with which the government has been negotiating cooperative tie-ups have been invited to send their ministers to Busan to further strengthen the ties by signing MOUs. The countries include Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Indonesia and Columbia.
Through the ministerial meeting, the government plans to introduce its superior green transportation policies and excellent private ITS technologies.
In Mongolia and Azerbaijan, Korea has been getting requests for technology consultancy. Korea has also been asked to join ITS projects from the CIS, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Central and South America. Currently, work is underway in such countries as Columbia, the Dominican Republic, Vietnam, China and Bahrain to secure ITS projects. nw

Transportation ministers that participated in the 17th ITS World Congress held in Busan from Oct.25-29 pose together for a photo session.