Creating the World's First 'Barrier-Free Transportation City' with Smart Technology... Busan City Selected for 'Smart City Challenge' Main Project

Ministry of Land and Busan City Take First Step in 20 Billion KRW Project Over 2 Years

Creating Safe and Convenient Barrier-Free Transportation Environment with Smart Technology Applied

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Busan is expected to become the world's first barrier-free transportation city providing safety services to vulnerable transportation groups such as the elderly and disabled using smart technology.

Busan City was finally selected for the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's '2021 Smart City Challenge' main project.

The 'Smart City Challenge Project' is a project where citizens, companies, and local governments work together to develop comprehensive solutions to solve transportation-related problems throughout the city.

Busan City was selected as the main project site and will promote the project over the next two years with a budget of 20 billion KRW (10 billion KRW from the national government and 10 billion KRW from local government).

Busan City was selected as a preliminary project institution for the Smart City Challenge in May last year and has been conducting service demonstrations with citizens by forming a consortium of related institutions and companies in the demonstration area of Dong-gu, Busan, from July 2020 to February 2021.

In the midst of the great economic and social transformation after COVID-19, Busan City focused on strengthening inclusiveness to ensure that no marginalized groups or regions are left behind. It prioritized discovering and implementing services for vulnerable transportation groups who practically need smart city technology, and plans to gradually expand these services.

In the upcoming main project, based on the demonstration results, barrier-free navigation will be expanded centered around subway stations.

Busan City plans to establish barrier-free stations and ride-sharing platforms throughout the city. Additionally, new services will be added to provide a safe walking environment for the elderly and disabled, aiming to realize a barrier-free transportation city that anyone, whether vulnerable or non-vulnerable to transportation, can use.

To complete the services, plans will be made to further expand citizen participation, including people with disabilities and the elderly, and to develop strategies for barrier-free certification.

Lee Byung-jin, Acting Mayor of Busan, said, “We will steadily promote the Smart City Challenge main project to create a smart city model where a safe and convenient transportation environment can be experienced and support its expansion nationwide. We will start services in Busan not only for Busan citizens but also for the people of Korea and citizens of the world.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.