The Junta de Andalucía is facing the modernization and digitalization of public transport with an investment of 28 million euros. The Minister of Development, Territorial Articulation, and Housing, Rocío Díaz, informed, during the inauguration in Seville of the European Congress of Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS), of the most relevant measures of this plan promoted by the Andalusian Government, highlighting the technological leap that the transport card will undergo and the creation of the public transport control and management center.
Rocío Díaz has outlined the strategy of the Government of Juanma Moreno for «a different way of understanding mobility», which «focuses on modernization and digitalization in transport», combined with better infrastructures and affordable fares. A model that, as the Minister of Development pointed out, has led to «an increasing number of Andalusians choosing to move efficiently». In this regard, Díaz recalled that 2024 was the best year in the history of metropolitan public transport in Andalucía, with 124 million passengers, «twice as many as just seven years ago».
Likewise, the Minister of Development highlighted that Andalucía has «a unique intermodality model in Spain«, thanks to the Consortium card (green card, large family or youth), a single card that allows travel on metropolitan and urban buses, metros, trams, ferries and, in recent months, on Cercanías trains. Additionally, as she pointed out, it can be used in any of the Andalusian metropolitan areas, making «interoperability a reality, simple and uncomplicated».
Building on this successful foundation, the Ministry of Development is working to take a technological leap with a new transport card with enhanced features, to be used on all public transport in Andalucía. Currently, the first phase of developing the platform is underway to eventually incorporate new payment and mobility methods. «We want boarding a bus or metro to be as easy as unlocking your phone,» Rocío Díaz stated.
This card is part of a broader effort by the Junta de Andalucía: a plan for modernizing public transport in Andalucía, focusing on digitalization and smart management. Among the measures being implemented is the Public Transport Management and Control Center in Andalucía, a system that «will allow real-time monitoring of what is happening on the main transport corridors».
In her speech, the Minister of Development also listed other actions, such as digitizing the management of the conservation of the over 10,500 kilometers of road network or implementing digital twins in Andalusian metros. «The goal is to enhance the user experience, which is ultimately our true priority,» she emphasized.
The European Congress ITS 2025 will take place from May 19 to 21 at the Palace of Exhibitions and Congress of Seville with 3,500 participants, over 120 exhibitors, and more than a hundred sessions, highlighting local and regional advancements in sustainable transport. A congress that, as Díaz expressed, will mark «a turning point» in the path towards the sustainable mobility that Europe desires and aligns with the goals of the UN’s Agenda 2030.