Gyeonggi Expands 'Non-Stop Golden Time Operation' to South Chungcheong and Gangwon Following Incheon

Gyeonggi Province is expanding its "Metropolitan Emergency Vehicle Priority Signal System" to South Chungcheong and Gangwon, following Incheon.

On April 9, Gyeonggi Provincial Government held a "Metropolitan Emergency Vehicle Priority Signal System Interlinking Briefing Session" at the provincial office, attended by representatives from the National Fire Agency, South Chungcheong Province, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, each province's fire headquarters, and the Korea Intelligent Transport Systems Association. At the event, they discussed sharing technology and cooperation measures to promote nationwide adoption.

The core of this project is to link the advanced traffic system among Gyeonggi Province, South Chungcheong Province, and Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, so that emergency vehicles such as fire trucks and ambulances can automatically control traffic signals along their route, allowing them to pass through intersections without stopping.

The previous priority signal systems had a critical limitation: signal control was interrupted when an emergency vehicle left the boundaries of a city or county. Gyeonggi Province has overcome this by integrating the system on a metropolitan scale, making it possible for emergency vehicles to pass through jurisdictional boundaries without stopping until they reach their destination. After holding a related kickoff briefing session in Incheon last March, the province now plans to extend the system to South Chungcheong and Gangwon regions as well.

Gyeonggi Provincial Government

Gyeonggi Province's metropolitan interlinking system completely resolves the issue of signal discontinuity that used to occur when fire trucks or ambulances crossed city and county boundaries. If this system is adopted nationwide, emergency vehicles will be able to travel seamlessly even during long-distance patient transfers that cross provincial borders, which is expected to bring about a significant transformation in the disaster response system. In particular, by breaking down the technical barriers between metropolitan governments, this system is being recognized as a key infrastructure that will elevate the nation’s overall disaster response capabilities to a new level.

With this briefing session as a starting point, Gyeonggi Province plans to continue close technical cooperation with neighboring metropolitan governments such as South Chungcheong and Gangwon. From the first half of 2027, when the system is officially implemented, it is expected that ambulances heading to major hospitals will be able to travel across metropolitan boundaries without delay.

Yoon Tae-wan, Director General of the Gyeonggi Province Transportation Bureau, stated, "Based on Gyeonggi Province's outstanding transportation technology, we will actively cooperate with other metropolitan governments," adding, "We will do our utmost to establish a nationwide safety network so that emergency patients do not lose precious time waiting at signals anywhere in Korea."

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