The Ministry of Mobility and Digital Transformation and the Segovia Provincial Council are promoting actions to improve the reception of the DTT signal in Caballar, Sanchonuño, and Navafría. In addition to this, the regional government is committed to providing one million euros for the Smart Rural Territory project in Castilla y León, which includes 187 sensors in the province of Segovia.
February 21, 2025
Castilla y León | Ministry of Mobility and Digital Transformation
The Minister of Mobility and Digital Transformation, José Luis Sanz Merino, and the President of the Segovia Provincial Council, Miguel Ángel de Vicente, have held a monitoring meeting on the agreements regarding Terrestrial Digital Television (TDT) and Smart Rural Territory. «The commitment of the Government of Alfonso Fernández Mañueco is to work for the welfare of the citizens, something that is materialized with this agreement,» explained Sanz Merino.
The Junta de Castilla y León has allocated 585,000 euros to the provincial councils for the improvement of Terrestrial Digital Television (TDT) coverage in rural areas. This financial allocation is distributed among the nine provincial councils (65,000 euros each) with the aim that any citizen of the Community, regardless of where they live, has access to quality television. The provincial institutions contribute an additional 65,000 euros so that the economic amount per province reaches 130,000 euros.
The territorial extension of Castilla y León means that television coverage in the Community is significantly lower than the national average. «We request the Government of Spain, which has competencies in this matter, to get involved in the financing to facilitate equal access to the TDT service,» demanded Sanz Merino.
In the case of Segovia, one of the provincial councils that is expediting actions in its territory, as explained by the provincial president, they are working in Caballar and Sanchonuño, providing them with new TDT broadcasting centers. In Navafría, a broadcasting center that serves around 9,000 citizens, the number of channels has been increased.
The minister recalled that the extension of TDT coverage «is an action of marked social character, as it particularly affects rural areas and is necessary to guarantee social and territorial cohesion.» He emphasized that «it is an inalienable right for citizens to access these services, regardless of where they live.»
The Junta de Castilla y León has repeatedly called for the need for the Government of Spain to get involved in the extension of TDT coverage. This was done in recent allegations to the Royal Decree project approving the National Technical Plan for Digital Television, demanding that the Ministry cover the significant costs that the new technical measures will entail.
The Junta de Castilla y León has a network of 648 TDT broadcasting centers, which allows expanding the coverage of national channels to approximately 99% and regional channels to 94.5%. This network serves around 350,000 citizens, with an annual maintenance cost of 5.4 million euros fully supported by the regional administration for over 10 years.
Additionally, at the end of 2024, grants amounting to 903,769.69 euros were awarded to subsidize HD SAT-TDT receivers and facilitate the access of rural residents of Castilla y León who have been affected by the shutdown of the standard format (SD) TDT. The total number of beneficiaries was 2,322, belonging to 613 beneficiary population entities.
Smart Rural Territory
The Ministry of Mobility and Digital Transformation will also allocate one million euros until 2028 for the Smart Rural Territory project for the intelligent management of public services through Internet of Things (IoT) sensors.
This financial allocation will exceed 1.5 million euros with contributions from the nine provincial councils. «We put technology at the service of the citizens of Castilla y León with a platform capable of managing, through the sensorization of elements, critical public services in the daily life of the municipalities of the Community,» stated Sanz Merino.
Currently, more than 3,500 sensorized points are integrated into the Smart Rural Territory platform in Castilla y León, reaching over 400 municipalities. At present, there are 187 sensors installed in Segovia, a significant part dedicated to intelligent waste management, but also in water quality, roads, or smart lighting. The goal is to monitor in real-time the conditions occurring where they are installed and, consequently, make real-time decisions based on the collected data and the alerts that can be configured.
The work of the Junta de Castilla y León goes beyond investment thanks to its technical assistance through the Smart Rural Support Office, supporting municipalities and provincial councils. This is complemented by technical meetings with the provincial councils to advise them on the most appropriate actions to take under the new agreement signed.