Skip to main content

Colombia awards major traffic management contract to Indra

Colombian highway concessionaire Coviandes has awarded Indra the contract, worth nearly US$35 million, for the design, installation and start-up of the intelligent traffic systems (ITS) the control and communications systems for 45 kilometres of the Bogota-Villavicencio highway in Colombia.
May 8, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
RSSColombian highway concessionaire 7764 Coviandes has awarded 509 Indra the contract, worth nearly US$35 million, for the design, installation and start-up of the intelligent traffic systems (ITS) the control and communications systems for 45 kilometres of the Bogota-Villavicencio highway in Colombia.

The Bogota-Villavicencio road has the highest traffic growth in the country since it is the only ground connection between central Colombia, the eastern region and Venezuela. Increasing capacity by dualling the road will make it possible to increase the speed limit by 50 km/h and reduce travel times by more than 25 minutes.

Indra’s advanced solutions will control the 18 tunnels, 41 bridges and three overpasses that will allow doubling of the road along approximately one third of the highway, making it possible to travel on two lanes in each direction.

A new operations control centre, located in Naranjal, integrated with two existing control centres, will manage traffic in the eight sectors of the new highway. In common with the other centres, the Naranjal centre will be equipped with Indra's Horus integrated road and tunnel management solution, allowing centralised management of the various systems installed in the new tunnels, which have been designed to meet European security standards for security and operation.

The Horus solution integrates the various ITS systems and provides road operators with access to real-time information on the road status, enabling them to optimise resources during incidents and provide drivers will real-time travel information.

Indra will install automatic incident detection systems throughout the entire Bogota-Villavicencio highway to ensure immediate response to events that could endanger user safety or traffic along the highway. A video surveillance system with automatic accident detection will be installed, along with air quality measurement, incident detection and weather station equipment, and various alarms will be activated in the event of an emergency. Other safety measures include contraflow travel to allow vehicles to use a single carriageway in both directions in the event of an emergency.

Speed sensors and variable message signs will provide drivers with real time information on road conditions, speed limits and incidents. The tunnels will also be equipped with visibility sensors, an artificial lighting system, an emergency and evacuation system, as well as power generators and back-up power systems.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Alstom consortium wins Spanish rail signalling contract
    April 25, 2014
    An Alstom-led consortium which includes Bombardier and Indra has been awarded a contract worth US$567.5 million by the Spanish infrastructure manager ADIF to supply its European Train Control System (ERTMS) Level 2 signalling system, together with maintenance for a period of 20 years for Spain’s new north-west high speed line.
  • East Africa uses cargo tracking to foils criminals and collect tax
    June 10, 2015
    Shem Oirere looks at the beneficial effect of cargo tracking. The mandatory installation of electronic cargo tracking and security (ECTS) systems in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda has helped enhance revenue collection, enforce cargo handling requirements, improved the business environment of the respective countries’ trade routes and helped cargo hauliers cut costs. This is being spearheaded by the state-owned tax collection agencies and the improved custom duty collection has not only enabled a reduction of im
  • Siemens to equip Hong Kong's longest road tunnel
    July 8, 2016
    Siemens is to supply all the traffic control and monitoring systems for the twin-bore Liantang tunnel, which will link Hong Kong to the new Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai border crossing with mainland China. The five kilometre long tunnel forms part of a four-lane freeway link, extending to around eleven kilometres in total, and is intended to provide a direct connection for cross-border freight and passenger vehicle traffic between the Northeast New Territories and the Eastern part of Shenzhen on the Chinese
  • Gotthard Base Tunnel opens in Switzerland
    June 1, 2016
    After 17 years of construction, the 57 kilometre-long Gotthard Base Tunnel in Switzerland, said to be the longest train tunnel in the world opens today, 1 June. At a depth inside the Gotthard massif of more than 2,000 metres, trains will travel at up to a maximum 250 kilometres per hour. The opening is attracting attention from high profile figures outside of Switzerland, including Germany’s chancellor Angela Merkel, French president François Hollande and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who will al