Gyeonggi-do Introduces Nationwide First Metropolitan Emergency Vehicle Priority Signal System

Gyeonggi Province completed a demonstration of the metropolitan emergency vehicle priority signal system on the 16th. After the demonstration, Oh Hu-seok, Deputy Governor for Administration of Gyeonggi Province, is taking a commemorative photo with the attendees.

Gyeonggi Province is introducing the nation's first 'Metropolitan Emergency Vehicle Priority Signal System' that allows emergency vehicles such as fire trucks and ambulances to quickly cross city and county boundaries without being restricted by traffic signals.

On the 16th, Gyeonggi Province announced that it held a 'Metropolitan Emergency Vehicle Priority Signal System Demonstration' at the Unjeong 119 Safety Center in Paju City.

The demonstration was conducted by applying the priority signal system to an ambulance traveling from the Unjeong 119 Safety Center in Paju City to Ilsan Paik Hospital in Goyang City. When the priority signal system was applied on this route, travel time was reduced by more than 50% on average.

The emergency vehicle priority signal system is a signaling system that helps emergency vehicles move quickly to their destinations without stopping at red lights during emergencies. Although the traffic signal system is managed by the National Police Agency, when fire trucks or other emergency vehicles are dispatched, the priority signal system automatically operates by utilizing traffic signal information and vehicle location data.

The problem is that this emergency vehicle priority signal system does not operate when crossing city or county boundaries. Since each city or county operates different traffic signal systems and priority signal systems, emergency vehicles receive assistance from the priority signal system within their own jurisdiction, but once they cross into another city or county, drivers must rely on sirens and flashing lights to move urgently, which is a burden.

To solve this problem, Gyeonggi Province has been preparing to introduce a metropolitan emergency vehicle priority signal system since 2021 through the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) contest project, in collaboration with the National Police Agency, the National Fire Agency, the National Intelligence Service, the Korea Road Traffic Authority, and the Gyeonggi Provincial Fire and Disaster Headquarters.

ITS is a future-oriented transportation system that applies advanced transportation technologies. This system analyzes traffic signal information and emergency vehicle location data in real time during dispatches of emergency vehicles (ambulances, fire trucks, police cars, etc.) to allow them to pass first.

Gyeonggi Province created a standard signaling system that all cities and counties within the province can use, enabling each jurisdiction to utilize it. In addition, together with the National Police Agency and the National Fire Agency, they developed a standard plan for metropolitan emergency vehicle priority signals. Goyang City and Paju City were selected as the first pilot project areas, where the new metropolitan emergency vehicle priority signal system was installed.

Starting with Paju and Goyang, Gyeonggi Province plans to apply the priority signal system pilot project in five southern Gyeonggi areas including Anyang and Gwangmyeong by the end of this year. In 2024, an additional 10 cities and counties will be added.

Oh Hu-seok, Deputy Governor for Administration of Gyeonggi Province, emphasized, "The introduction of the priority signal system is one of the measures responding to the increase in emergency vehicles that need to move beyond local governments due to recent large-scale metropolitan fires or social disasters. It is an absolutely necessary project that reduces the burden on emergency patients who must move to hospitals in other cities or counties due to the absence of regional emergency centers, as well as on drivers who must make urgent dispatches."

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