What Does A Smart City Look Like?

A smart city is about far more than just smart electricity meters and South Africa’s cities are lagging far behind.

- Lloyd Gedye

A few years ago this finweek correspondent attended a conference in Barcelona on the Internet of Things and Smart Cities.

The city of Barcelona had partnered with various private sector players to test smart city technologies through pilot projects.

Delegates got to interact with bus stops that had been turned into WiFi hotspots. Smart parking spots allowed commuters to log into an app and find the nearest available spot to park, and the city could tell when you had overstayed and didn’t have to rely on random monitoring to issue tickets for parking violations.

Efficiencies in waste and refuse systems had been created, with sensors monitoring smell and gas build-up and waste. Refuse removal trips were planned so that half-full storage containers were not emptied.

Water supply and distribution were monitored and problems picked up by the system, not through complaints.

Museums illustrated how they had digitised their entire collections. This had taken them from being national or regional museums to international online museums.

On the streets of Barcelona, tourists were able, via their phones, to have virtual interactions with the history of certain sites in the city.

All very impressive. But when considering the state of internet connectivity in South Africa, it did feel as if many of these technologies were for the developed world. After all, we live in a country where #DataMustFall is top of mind for many South Africans.

INCREASED URBANISATION

Globally, cities produce more than 80% of economic output and are critical to the world economy.