Introduction

The Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI), a British Overseas Territory of 40 low-lying coral islands nestled just southeast of the Bahamas, are renowned for their crystal-clear waters and white sand beaches. These islands attract visitors from around the world, with tourism serving as the backbone of the local economy. Yet, beneath this paradise lies a critical challenge: the absence of up to date, reliable street level imagery and map data.

Committed to positioning the islands as a leader in digital transformation within the Caribbean and to bring this vision to life, MITE partnered with World Travel in 360, a team of specialists in mobile mapping and 360° imagery. Leveraging their expertise and the Mapillary platform, the team set out to capture over 1,000 kilometers of roads across six islands.

With the Ministry of Innovation, Technology and Energy (MITE) headquartered on a single island officials often encountered significant blockers when it came to traveling between islands to survey sites or manage resources. Such journeys could be time consuming and costly, further complicating efforts to maintain and develop the islands’ assets. This gap has hindered not only tourism but also effective governance, asset management, and local business operations. Recognizing these challenges, MITE sought a solution that would bridge the data gap and support the islands’ development goals.

Connecting With World Travel in 360

World Travel in 360 are specialists in mobile mapping and high-resolution imagery capture. The team has traveled the globe, mapping diverse locations and telling their story in 360° uploading their journey to Mapillary. Their expertise spans street level imagery, and virtual tours, working B2B with governments to create comprehensive street-level coverage and with hotels and businesses to deliver immersive virtual experiences.

Recognizing the need for accurate, updated imagery for development, planning, and tourism, MITE worked with World Travel in 360 and together the team proposed a solution: capture the islands with high-resolution 360° cameras and drones, not only to develop a tourism platform but also to enable the government to use Mapillary to make data-driven decisions and manage assets more effectively. TCI's Minister of Innovation, Hon. Erwin Jay Saunders was instrumental in supporting this project, his guidance and support in navigating local logistics, permissions, and inter-agency coordination enabled the team to operate efficiently.

To qoute Hon. Erwin Jay Saunders:

“We’re not just mapping for the sake of maps. This is about empowering our ministries, businesses, and citizens with the data they need to build a better, smarter Turks and Caicos Islands .”

Capturing Street-Level Imagery in Turks and Caicos

The mapping project was ambitious in both scale and technology. The team mapped more than 1,000 kilometers of roads across six islands: Providenciales, Grand Turk (the capital), North Caicos, Middle Caicos, South Caicos, and Salt Cay. Providenciales serves as the business and tourism hub.

The workflow for this mapping project was meticulously organized to address a range of technical and logistical challenges.

• Managing large volumes of raw data using custom camera mounts and GPS antennas.
• Navigated the complexities of mapping across multiple islands with careful route planning.
• Coordinated teamwork to optimize coverage and ensure no area was missed.
• Leveraged Mapillary’s ‘Organizations’ feature to operate two vehicles simultaneously, capturing imagery in parallel.

This structured approach enabled the team to efficiently capture and manage comprehensive mapping data for the Turks and Caicos Islands, ensuring high-quality results and complete coverage.

To achieve the highest quality results, the team used Insta360° Titan cameras, capable of capturing 360° imagery at an impressive 11K resolution with precise GPS tagging. This advanced setup enabled the collection of tens of thousands of geotagged images, ensuring comprehensive and accurate coverage of the islands. All imagery was stored on multiple 256GB SD cards, and organized before being uploaded to Mapillary. To ensure privacy, all images were automatically Blurred by Mapillary to protect license plates and faces.

After the imagery was uploaded, Mapillary’s computer vision automatically analysed the photos to detect and extract features such as traffic signs, road attributes, and other signage. The extracted features are then geolocated and added to the map, turning raw imagery into structured data.

The dataset is now available for exploration (Mapillary:Turks and Caicos). This data provides a clearer understanding of the environment, which enables planning, asset management, and infrastructure monitoring. Planners, government officials, and others can access the extracted features and imagery through the Mapillary web viewer, the API, or by integrating the data into GIS platforms like ArcGIS. This makes it possible to review, analyze, and incorporate up to date street-level information into different workflows and decision-making processes.

Transforming Tourism and Governance

Now, travelers from around the world can virtually explore the islands, plan their trips, and discover new attractions with ease. The team from World Travel in 360 is actively working with the government of Turks and Caicos to use the imagery captured as part of a marketing campaign, developing virtual experiences for users to experience the islands ahead of their stay.

For the local government, Mapillary serves as a powerful platform for remote asset identification and informed decision-making, significantly reducing the need for time consuming site visits across the islands. By hosting imagery, Mapillary enables government teams to easily share links, collaborate across departments, and capture new data as an organization. The platform’s feature extraction capabilities automatically identify and catalog critical infrastructure elements, such as traffic signs (including speed limits, stop signs, and yield signs), road attributes (like sidewalks, lane markings, and road surfaces), and street furniture (such as crosswalks, lighting, and benches).

This rich dataset can be seamlessly integrated into GIS systems, supporting infrastructure planning, maintenance, and disaster preparedness. As Turks and Caicos continue to develop with new villas, hotels, and public works, the government plans to regularly update the imagery, allowing them to track changes and support sustainable growth. Beyond urban development, this comprehensive visual record also aids in monitoring climate change impacts, coastal erosion, and the health of coral reefs, ensuring that the islands’ natural and built environments are managed effectively for years to come.

Conclusion

Mapillary is proud to support the The Turks and Caicos mapping project demonstrating how up to date street level imagery can address data gaps for tourism, governance, and infrastructure management. By partnering with World Travel in 360 and leveraging Mapillary, the islands now have a comprehensive, accessible dataset covering over 1,000 kilometers. This imagery supports asset inventories, planning, and virtual exploration for both government and the public. Regular updates will ensure continued high-quality data as the islands develop. The data is available on Mapillary’s platform and can be accessed today.

If you have already captured 360 imagery, please check out our help page on how to upload your imagery with the latest Desktop Uploader. If you still need help to upload your imagery, please feel free to reach out to us at support@mapillary.com.

Let’s map the world in 360 together! 🙂
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