The University's Department of Geography and Planning has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Department of Urban Planning and Engineering at Pusan National University (PNU) based in Busan, South Korea.
Under the agreement, the two organisations will explore staff and student exchanges, joint research activities and the exchange of scientific and technical knowledge and materials across a number of areas including urban planning, transportation and geographic data science.
The MoU builds on existing links between the University's Department of Geography and Planning and PNU, who are currently partnering on an innovative research project to improve Liverpool's bus services.
The 'Big Data Digital Twin of Mass Transit in Liverpool City Region for Smart, Equitable Mobility' project aims to improve bus journey times and connectivity in the Liverpool City Region.
It draws on Liverpool's research expertise in geographic data science alongside urban data and transport planning expertise from researchers at PNU.
As part of the project, the research team have created a 'digital twin' (digital replica) of Liverpool's transport system to accurately model the effects of different scenarios. The team comprises academics from Geography & Planning, notably Dr Heeseo Rain Kwon, Dr Patrick Ballantyne and Professor Alex Singleton.
The project is funded by the UKRI Innovate UK UK-South Korea Collaborative R&D programme, and Liverpool researchers visited PNU last September as part of this project. UK collaborators Podaris, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, and the University of Liverpool will be competing for Phase 2 Innovate UK funding over the next couple of months.
Associate Pro-Vice Chancellor for Global Engagement and Partnerships within the Faculty of Science and Engineering, Professor Alan Marshall, said: "This Memorandum of Understanding builds on a long-standing relationship with Pusan National University. The renewed partnership will place a special emphasis on joint research activities and staff and student exchanges, ensuring a dynamic and mutually beneficial relationship. It will focus on areas such as urban planning and governance, geographic data science, transport, maritime and ports, and climate change.
"Let us celebrate the power of collaboration and the potential it holds to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. Together, we can harness the strength of partnerships to drive innovation, create positive societal impact, and build a sustainable future for all."
KUDATA: An opportunity for celebration and cross-sector collaboration
The MoU was signed during a visit to the city by a delegation from PNU and Korean business Sundosoft who were attending a conference to showcase the outcomes and prototypes emerging from the KUDATA (Korea-UK Digital Twin Approach for Transport Analysis) project.
The KUDATA conference included a Digital Twin transport symposium hosted in Liverpool by the University. The symposium, which involved representatives from organisations such as the Department for Transport, Transport for Greater Manchester, as well as academic experts who specialise in smart cities and urban planning, provided an opportunity to showcase the Liverpool Digital Twin prototype.
Dr Patrick Ballantyne added: "It has been great to collaborate with PNU on this innovative research project, and bring together our complementary areas of expertise to improve Liverpool City Region bus services. This MoU provides an opportunity to deepen our ties even further, and we are keen to take forward the second phase of this project in the coming year."
During the symposium, Professor of Geographic Information Science Alex Singleton launched his new Geographic Data Service, a new data service project supported by Smart Data Research UK (SDR UK).
The PNU delegation also enjoyed a live demonstration of the Meta-Liverpool platform, an innovative, city-scale digital asset and policy modelling tool which is hosted by the University's Digital Innovation Facility.
Liverpool - Busan links
In 2023, the city of Liverpool and the city of Busan in South Korea signed a Memorandum of Understanding to support closer collaboration in digital innovation and smart cities, clean energy and net-zero innovation, and health innovation.
The Liverpool City Region is one of only four places selected to take part in the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology led UK-South Korea Innovation Twinning Programme.
