The topic of “smart cities” has been in the media for some time. Smart cities are highly populated, urban areas that leverage a variety of sensors throughout city infrastructure (e.g., street lights, roads, subways, intersections) to connect them to the internet of things (IoT), making these city objects “smarter.” The sensors collect data and use it to manage infrastructure and resources more efficiently. Smart cities can also share data and information to improve the quality of city services and help protect citizens.
Smart cities have evolved over the last few years to include everything from smart street lights that conserve energy by sensing daylight and switching on and off to camera enforcement technologies that change driver behavior for safer roadways. Some other examples of smart city technology include the proliferation of solar panels on the roofs of city buildings and dwellings, app-based crisis response systems for citizens, air quality meters for a better environment, smart climate control systems for occupied offices and residences to control energy use, biometric payment systems for convenience, sensors that detect concealed handguns for safety and so many others.
McKinsey notes that establishing a smart city is about more than "installing digital interfaces in traditional infrastructure or streamlining city operations." It's about making sure that technology and data is used to help us make better decisions and improve quality of life.
It’s true that technologies such as 5G and IoT have been instrumental in networking a variety of sensors, beacons and endpoints that work together to connect various pieces of city infrastructure. These technologies are important for smart energy conservation (i.e., smart street lights). But smart cities that lead to better quality of life can also include things like traffic efficiency. Congestion pricing, for example, can be useful in very large and growing cities around the world, as can smart intersections in which traffic pattern data is read in real time to deliver appropriate traffic signal changes.
The Detail Is In The Data
One of the most important pieces of smart city technology that is often overlooked in discussions about topics such as 5G, IoT and AI is data. As cities grow larger, traffic mobility can improve quality of life. I know this from experience, as this is an area of focus for my company. Connected systems that incorporate data and technology help optimize traffic efficiency.
Using technology to capture data from traffic patterns, cities can use the data to assist with more efficient mobility solutions. There are a couple of ways to collect that data. One is automated license plate recognition (ALPR), a type of AI software that reads and captures license plates. The other is through collecting data from the billions of cars every year that pass over sensors or past cameras (e.g., in-ground loops or magnetometers, noninvasive radars or standard and high-definition video cameras). Through traffic data APIs, this data can be shared with cities to unlock further potential.
While these pieces of technology are useful for delivering safety and efficiency in cities, there is often some trepidation about incorporating this technology because of privacy concerns. While ALPR and AI (as well as data collection in general) might spark these apprehensions, it's important to communicate the use and value of these technologies. I suggest making it clear that they aren't used to monitor specifics for every individual, but to capture potential criminals and leverage overall traffic data for patterns and flow to make commutes more efficient. For example, ALPR can be leveraged within cities to capture license plates for police to issue BOLO notices, such as Amber or Silver Alerts. But ALPR can also be leveraged to make city roadways more efficient with improved commutes for citizens.
Technology and data can help cities improve mobility efficiency in a variety of ways. Here are just a few ways your cities can implement these advances:
Congestion Pricing
Using ALPR, cities can capture the number of cars coming in and out of cities and charge these drivers tolls for peak traffic hours in the city to reduce overall traffic and encourage reliance on public or rideshare transportation.
Gridlock Relief
During rush hours, gridlock in intersections can severely impede traffic mobility in highly populated cities. Some cities in Europe implement photo enforcement cameras to capture drivers blocking intersections to modify driver behavior and keep intersections open. The same technology has potential in the United States.
Traffic Patterns
By analyzing ALPR AI software, cities can capture the number of cars coming in and out of cities and intersections to determine what type of infrastructure growth is needed for the future.
Public Transportation
Bus lane mobility cameras and data can help improve driver mobility by deterring drivers from using the bus lane during peak traffic hours to enable buses to move freely.
There are many other ways technology and data can make cities smarter, but citizens can rejoice in the continual improvement in traffic and mobility efficiency of the future.
