Fifth Journal - SMART CITY 2.0: THE SECOND WAVE IN SMART CITY TRANSFORMATION

The term “smart city” doesn’t describe a sci-fi utopia. A smart city is simply one that uses technology to improve outcomes across every aspect of city operations and enhance the services it offers to its residents. It collects and uses data to drive its decision-making, and creates networks of partners among governments, businesses, nonprofits, community groups, universities, and hospitals to expand and improve its ability to serve its residents. Until recently, discussions of smart cities focused on infrastructure: big data and information technology used to better manage urban assets such as public transit, wastewater systems and roads. In many ways, this “connected infrastructure” vision represents Smart City 1.0 — physical assets networked via sensor technology that generate streams of valuable data from “smart” parking meters, streetlights, and so forth. 

For many cities, this is still a powerful vision. Some more advanced smart cities have begun to move beyond infrastructure. A truly smart city leverages new-found data to tap the wisdom of its residents and visitors. The digital infrastructure of a smart city allows access to data that can unleash tremendous value, driving smarter decision-making by planners, community groups, and individual residents. Today, cities operate at the intersection of the 3Ds: Data, Digital, and (user) Design. These are the building blocks of a second wave of transformation, Smart City 2.0. It is fundamentally about applying a different “lens” to use a combination of digital technology, data, and design thinking to drive improvement initiatives and focus on the constituents. City officials, businesses, non-profits’, schools, and individuals alike will be able to use a treasure trove of data to make more effective decisions in arenas from energy use to mobility.

REASEARCH MODEL-FRAMEWORK

VARIABLE & ITEMS (MEASUREMENTS)

1.      Economy

A thriving economy boosts personal income and provides much-needed tax revenue. Cities looking to revitalize their economies should think creatively about policies that accelerate talent development, economic growth, and productive employment. The smart economy of the future is expected to be both seamless and dynamic. The ubiquity of digital technology and other emerging technologies, moreover, will require government regulatory machinery to become more nimble and responsive.

Some major trends shaping the smart economy of the future include:

• An open talent economy, as remote working capabilities and independent contractors create a shift to a border less workplace.

• Training tuned to match the skills required, resulting in shorter training periods, a reduced skills gap, and faster job creation.

• The rise of innovation labs that devise products and solutions to societal problems while providing a “safe” space for innovation and collaboration.

• Business ecosystems evolving around key areas such as health care, transportation, and education, forming dynamic and collaborative networks to solve real-world issues.

2.      Mobility

Mobility becomes as much about bits and bytes as roads and rails. Today, traffic congestion is being addressed with sensor powered dynamic pricing and mobile enabled, collaborative transport models such as ride sharing and social transport apps. Already, we’re seeing digital platforms that integrate end-to-end trip preparation, offering planning, booking, electronic ticketing and payment services across all modes of transportation, public or private. Mobility thus is becoming a service.

But mobility-as-a-service isn’t the only trend driving this domain. Other trends that will affect the way cities adapt for mobility include:

• Dynamic pricing, which allows prices to fluctuate based on time of day, road congestion, speed, occupancy and even fuel efficiency and carbon emissions.

• Smart parking, which provides drivers with real-time information on the nearest free and paid parking spaces.

• Truly autonomous vehicles that maintain smooth traffic, safely reducing distances between cars and thus increasing road capacity.

3.      Security

            As crime becomes smarter and high-tech, public safety and security agencies must adapt to it. Law enforcement officers already use drones, wearable computing, facial recognition, and predictive video to fight crime. Data will play an increasingly important role in crime prevention as agencies try to preempt crime. Agencies now can analyze all streams of data, including social and crowdsourced data, to identify hot spots for street crime and deploy police more efficiently.

Cities also must become better equipped to mitigate and respond to cyber security issues. Secure data platforms, clear governance and smart access protocols can help safeguard data against inevitable hacking attempts.

The major trends affecting the security domain in a city include:

• Real-time crowd sourcing of crime data (incidence, degree, and nature) and the creation of large databases that can be used to identify areas meriting greater security.

• Drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) technology that can act as scouts for first respondents, minimizing risks for police officers or fire rescue workers in dangerous situations.

• Augmented-reality security screenings at airports and infrastructure hubs, which can reduce human error with automated facial and behavioral recognition on cyber security issues.

• Secure data platforms, clear governance and smart access protocols can help safeguard data against inevitable hacking attempts.

4.      Living

“Smart living” encompasses areas like health care, human services, and even smart infrastructure such as connected homes and smart buildings. Cities can promote tools that help residents monitor their health, wire their homes to improve energy use, or deliver more tailored human services. Coupled with new data approaches such as predictive analytics and insights from the field of behavioural economics, smart living helps citizens to make better choices.

Major trends that could enhance smart living include:

• Smart homes connect with electronic devices that allow real-time monitoring of a home’s energy use and security.

• Predictive analytics that tell city administrators which social interventions have a higher rate of success in each client’s individual circumstances.

• Wearable devices that track personal health data and make their users more receptive to behavioral nudges. Policymakers can use them to reward healthy lifestyles.

5.      Environment

As natural resources become scarcer, especially in a population-dense urban environment, reducing resource consumption can multiply financial and public health gains. Smart cities use sensor technology, behavioural economics, and gamification to improve physical infrastructure and encourage positive decisions.

Other trends that can drive sustainability and smart energy usage in cities include:

• Smart meters that help utilities to balance energy consumption and implement dynamic pricing.

• Distributed energy sources that transform consumers into “prosumers,” allowing homes and offices to both consume and generate electricity.

• Embedded sensors that monitor everything from pollution to land management, supplementing or replacing on-site inspections.

6.      Education

Education enabled by virtual learning, digitization, and augmented reality can transform the way we learn. Unbundled, personalized, and blended education will become more prevalent. Guided by rich data and analytics, next-generation teachers can adapt their techniques to maximize student success

Other major trends affecting the way we learn and use knowledge include:

• Blended learning models that mix elements of in-person instruction with self-paced online learning. Such models allow students to watch video lectures online at home and then spend class time solving problems, thus getting the most from the one-on-one time students spend with teachers.

• School-business collaborations that help teach job-specific skills.

• Adaptive counselling that uses computers to analyze data for insights into the needs and strengths of individual students.