Wonju, in Gangwon Province, announced Monday that its "ultra-precise bus location smart shelter" project has been selected for the Ministry of Science and ICT's 2027 Smart Village Deployment and Expansion project.
The project involves building smart shelters that protect commuters from extreme heat and cold, while upgrading the existing bus information system to an ultra-precise bus location tracking system.
Wonju plans to install smart shelters at eight key locations with high bus ridership and heavy use by mobility-impaired passengers.
The eight sites are the intercity and express bus terminal in Dangye-dong, Namwon-ro Nambu Market in Myeongnyun 1-dong, Lotte Cinema in Dangu-dong, Hanil Gas Station in Taejang 2-dong, Gangwon Auto Repair Technology hagwon in Usan-dong, Munmak Saemaul Credit Union in Munmak-eup, the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service in the innovation city district, and Lotte Castle 2nd Complex in the enterprise city district.
Each smart shelter will be equipped with heating and cooling systems, air purifiers, closed-circuit television cameras and emergency call buttons, allowing residents to wait for buses safely and comfortably year-round.
The city also plans to improve the readability of information displays at the nine smart shelters already in operation.
An ultra-precise bus location service linked to the existing bus information system will also be built, displaying the real-time positions of buses on a map so riders can track service more accurately. The system will also improve the precision of estimated arrival times, with that information accessible not only on stop-side display terminals but also on personal smartphones.
After the system goes live, the city plans to monitor the operational status of the smart shelters and related facilities through remote monitoring, while collecting and analyzing usage and bus operation data. The data gathered will be used to inform public transit policy tailored to Wonju's needs, including adjustments to bus dispatch intervals and route restructuring.
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