International Case Studies of Smart Cities: Songdo, Republic of Korea

This case study is one of ten international studies developed by the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements (KRIHS), in association with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), for the cities of Anyang, Medellin, Namyangju, Orlando, Pangyo, Rio de Janeiro, Santander, Singapore, Songdo, and Tel Aviv. At the IDB, the Competitiveness and Innovation Division (CTI), the Fiscal and Municipal Management Division (FMM), and the Emerging and Sustainable Cities Initiative (ESCI) coordinated the study. This project was part of technical cooperation ME-T1254, financed by the Knowledge Partnership Korean Fund for Technology and Innovation of the Republic of Korea. At KRIHS, the National Infrastructure Research Division coordinated the project and the Global Development Partnership Center provided the funding. Songdo, as part of Incheon Free Economic Zone, is an iconic new smart city of Korea that hosts international business events and attract IT, biotech, ad R&D facilities. Its smart city initiative began in 2008 and is still ongoing with an aim for completion by 2017. The project is largely divided into six sectors including transport, security, disaster, environment, and citizen interaction while other services related to home, business, education, health and car are also being developed. Specialized service in Songdo includes smart bike services, criminal vehicle tracking and monitoring unusual activities through motion detecting technology while Integrated Operation and Control Center (IOCC) readily facilitates collaboration between various agencies and citizen engagement. Songdo smart city initiative is managed by Incheon U-city Corporation, a private- public partnership in order to secure funding for system operation through effective business model.