Japan and South Korea Have Ambitious Goals for Intelligent Transportation Systems

Japan and Korea lead the world in Intelligent Transportation Systems, and national government agendas are among the most significant drivers for the development of ITS there. This leadership role leverages an already positive market climate for ITS services and consumer demand for telematics and LBS applications for vehicles, according to a new report from ABI Research.Senior analyst Andy Bae says, "The Japanese and South Korean governments, having assessed the environmental issues and social costs produced by transportation systems, have identified their primary ITS goals: lower accident rates, increased pedestrian safety, and reduced traffic congestion with its benefits of lower fuel consumption. Cooperating with manufacturers, they are starting to launch ambitious field tests and pilot services."

In South Korea, the government will invest a total of $3.2 billion from 2007 to 2020 in the "National ITS 21 Plan." Its aim, says Bae, is to install vehicle operation management systems and traffic information data terminals in all public buses. Installation of electronic payment systems on mass transit vehicles is expected to be completed by the end of 2011.

Meanwhile Japan is launching an ambitious ITS program called "Smartway 2007" on the Tokyo Metropolitan Expressway in October of this year. A full scale deployment throughout Japan will start in 2008. "Japan is currently entering a more mature stage," Bae notes. "The Japanese traffic information service scheme aims to implement advanced technologies progressively in conjunction with ITS projects, technologies such as AHS (Advanced Cruise-Assist Highway System) to eliminate the potential causes of accidents in high speed environments, and ASV (Advanced Safety Vehicle) to offer safer "smart driving" via vehicle-to-vehicle communications."

Electronic toll collection is another part of the overall picture in both countries, and ABI Research expects a 26% compound annual growth rate in South Korea to the end of the current forecast period in 2012. Japan is attempting to expand ETC applications by using in-vehicle ETC units for cashless service at parking lots and filling stations.

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Photo of highway in Japan by Daniel T. Yara.