Alicante Public Works Technical Engineers College marked the dates of March 23 and 24 with the II Civil Engineering Conference focused on the Low Emission Zone and Urban Intelligence, held in the auditorium of the Higher Polytechnic School of the University of Alicante.
The event combined in‑person attendance with a live broadcast and opened with remarks from Lina Maria Gaviria Orjuela, director of the Levante Traffic Management Center of the Ministry of the Interior. She welcomed the audience, highlighting collaborations with Virgil Gilart Iglesias, director of the Higher Polytechnic School of the University of Alicante, and Salvador Ivorra Chorro, Vice-Chancellor for Infrastructures at the University of Alicante. The session also featured Eduardo Francisco Vilchez Lopez, dean and organizer of CITOP Alicante, in a pivotal role coordinating the program.
With strong public involvement, the conference’s second edition centered on the use of new technologies in managing essential urban services, always through the lens of civil engineering. The program brought together specialists and leading institutions to examine specialized aspects of the profession. Sponsoring institutions included the Higher Polytechnic School, the University of Alicante, PMUS Civil, TEVA, FOPA (Alicante State Public Works and Utilities Federation), SRS, Civil Engineering Consulting, Lector Vision, EUROMA, Bosch, and PTV Group.
CITOP organizes trainings for construction, engineering and architecture professionals
The session featured insights from Jesus Alba Lopez, civil engineer and CEO of mobility and engineering company PMUS Civil. He explained how current technologies are shaping infrastructure management, with a focus on urban connectivity. Alba emphasized that the aim is to adapt to new mobility demands in cities by developing a wide range of models such as traffic simulations, emissions assessments, pollution tracking and noise analyses. The audience heard about practical applications expected to unfold in Low Emission Zones across nearby cities.
These conferences prioritized a broad view of urban management. Attendees explored comprehensive international analyses of Low Emission Zones in Alicante, Benidorm, Elche, and London. There was also targeted attention to city services such as the water cycle, urban room adaptations, parking logistics, traffic management, and current urban logistics needs.
The sessions concluded with a focus on student studies and the role of artificial intelligence in the city, a concept referred to as Urban Intelligence and the central theme of this second Civil Engineering Conference organized by the Alicante Region’s College of Public Works Technical Engineers. Presentations and panel discussions brought together civil engineering assistants, professionals, and students from Alicante and the broader Spanish context, revealing how technological applications permeate all practice areas within a city environment. The event broadened the scope beyond traditional infrastructures to encompass related urban contexts that hold significant importance.
main results
The Alicante conference offered both local and international case studies, including insights from London and New York, to illustrate practical approaches. Lina María Gaviria Orjuela emphasized that these sessions add value to the professional network by sharing local issues observed in municipal buildings and by fostering a culture of collective learning. The collaboration between public and private entities also emerged as a key driver, with companies active in the sector contributing expertise to strengthen ongoing projects.
Eduardo Francisco Vilchez López, who hosted the opening and closing segments along with Enrique Caballero González, highlighted two core takeaways from the program. First, civil engineering must embrace innovation and adopt cutting edge technologies, especially in relation to Low Emission Zones. Second, the profession must deliver technically sound solutions to the evolving needs of a rapidly changing society. The cases examined demonstrated readiness to manage growing urban populations within increasingly restricted spaces, where new traffic restrictions coexist with unprecedented mobility patterns.
Vilchez noted that these outcomes bring pride to civil engineering professionals in Alicante, reflecting a long‑standing commitment by the Alicante Public Works Technical Engineers Association to the discipline for more than three decades.