Smart cities can be defined as urban areas that use different types of electronic sensors to collect data to provide information for asset and resource management, not necessarily as a group of smart homes. Data can be collected in different ways – from citizens, their devices, city equipment and other business recipients. This data is then processed, analyzed, monitored and managed by transport and transportation systems, power plants, water supply, police, information systems, schools, libraries, hospitals and many other institutions.
The basis of smart cities is the so-called Internet of Things (IoT). The Internet of Things is a system of interconnected devices, mechanical and digital machines with unique identifiers and the ability to transmit data over a network without the need for human interaction. The concept of smart cities integrates information and communication technology (ICT) and various IoT-connected physical devices to optimize the efficiency of city operations and services. In this way, ICT would be used to increase the quality and interactivity of city services, reduce costs and resource consumption, and facilitate communication between citizens and the city administration.
Interest in smart cities has been fueled by some major social and global changes. Technological progress, economic and environmental changes, climate change, internet sales, growth of urban populations and even the coronavirus are just some of these changes that encourage the development of smart cities.
In addition to all of the above, the concept of a smart city goes further. Smart cities would encourage citizens to be more active members of society, giving feedback on the different services they received, the condition of the roads, the appearance of the surroundings or volunteering for social activities. Today, smart cities are still a rarity, which makes them attractive locations for living, employment and tourism.
Some of the key aspects for the development of smart cities are as follows:
- Modern digital infrastructure, combined with secure but open access to public data that would be provided to citizens when they need it.
- Intelligent physical infrastructure (IoT).
- Willingness to learn from others and experiment with new business approaches or business models.
- Transparency of the results and performance of the city administration so that citizens can evaluate them, institution by institution, and so that progress can be made.
From the above, it can be seen that the road to smart cities is still long. With all the resources that have to be invested and the amount of time it takes to progress, the question is how profitable is it? Why do we even need smart cities nowadays?
We need them precisely because urbanization is a process that does not stop. 54% of the world’s population lives in cities, and this number is expected to increase to 66% by 2050. If population growth is taken into account, urbanization will add 2.5 billion new people to cities over the next thirty years. There will be overcrowding in cities which will lead to depletion of resources, and growing socio-economic differences between citizens may lead to problems in the community. With careful implementation, smart cities can be the best investment to solve these problems. The connection between citizens on several levels and, as already mentioned, between the city administration and the population is increasing. In addition, smart cities are “environmentally aware” because in theory they use devices to monitor air cleanliness, along with other factors important to human health.
How successful a smart city is, once it is built, depends on several factors, some of which have already been mentioned in the text. In addition to people’s satisfaction, their connectivity, the quality of housing, trade and urban infrastructure, there are three other qualitative indicators of the level of development of a smart city:
- The prevalence of wireless connectivity
- Data openness
- Security
Wireless connectivity may not be the same in all cities, as not all cities are the same size. Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) is a fast growing technology that would suit most smart cities. It is specific in that it enables fast communication in IoT, such as sensors and receivers. Such technology includes technologies such as LoRa (long range), Bluetooth and many others. With the development of 5G technology, which is expected, smart cities should be raised to a new level and become an increasingly common phenomenon in the world.
Historically, governments, companies, and individuals themselves have strictly guarded their data and shared as little as possible with others. Privacy concerns and fears of security breaches outweighed the value of disseminating information. However, for a smart city to succeed, it needs to enable all its residents to share information and combine it with context to make informed decisions in real time.
Cameras throughout the city, smart roads and security surveillance of public places can add another layer of protection and security to citizens. Fantastic in theory, in practice, however, problems and doubts arise. The possibility of hacking and cyber attacks, data theft, lack of trust in information sources are just some of the problems that arise. The answers to these questions lie in physical data safes and strong identity checks and strong authentication.
There are four main security objectives:
- Availability – reliable access to all data in real time. Sharing, collecting and filtering information is essential, and all security solutions must not affect availability.
- Integrity – Smart cities depend on reliable and accurate data.
- Confidentiality – some collected and stored data may contain sensitive information about citizens. Unauthorized access to this information should be prevented.
- Accountability – system users must be responsible for their actions. Their interactions with sensitive systems must be recorded and linked to a specific user.
Some large world cities have already started the process of achieving the status of a smart city.
New York has launched several initiatives aimed at developing a smart part of the city. “Midtown in Motion,” a project of the New York City Department of Transportation, launched a management system that made commuting in Central New York 10% faster. “LinkNYC” provides free and high-speed Wi-Fi, phone calls, cell phone chargers and access to city services, maps and directions. This project represents a unified communication network (instead of payphones) between the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island. The “MyNCHA” application and website provide various online services to property owners. Launched in 2015. , MyNYCHA includes services such as paying rent, arranging repairs, warning of various breakdowns, viewing inspection schedules…
In Europe, Amsterdam and Copenhagen are the most prominent in the field of smart cities. Amsterdam as a smart city project started in 2009. year with over 170 projects. In addition to real-time traffic data, Amsterdam also has “roboats” (delivery ships) and floating self-sustaining villages that prevent overcrowding. Copenhagen, in collaboration with the American University of MIT, is developing a system of smart bicycles that will send real-time data to the administration and drivers through its sensors, most of which relate to traffic congestion and clean air. To further improve this, in collaboration with Google, the city has installed air-measuring equipment in street-view cars to produce a map of the city’s heat spots to inform cyclists and pedestrians where the air is cleanest and to help plan routes.
Croatia has a National Development Strategy until 2030. year, in which a large part is occupied by the development of smart cities. Although it is not yet at the level of the smartest cities in the world, Croatia is moving in the right direction, although it is still necessary to invest in improving infrastructure and modern technological solutions.
Zagreb Smart City is a strategy for improving Zagreb, which focuses on efficient, smart and transparent city administration, smart energy management, digital infrastructure, utility management and many other parameters that determine a smart city. In 2007 Rijeka introduced free Wi-Fi at selected locations in the city, and they also received the “Smart city” award for monitoring traffic with drones. Dubrovnik, as the largest tourist center, presented some solutions that make life easier for citizens and tourists. The city is introducing a smart parking system – sensors are placed in all parking lots, and people can use an app to find a free space. In addition, there is an application that monitors the movement of people in the old core and predicts crowds.
In addition to big cities, small towns are also participating in their progress towards smart city status. Vukovar has a model that would monitor traffic, implement smart traffic lights and turn on public lighting when it gets dark. Vrgorac has an app that directly connects local farmers and producers with customers. Bjelovar digitized public administration, and Pula digitized kindergartens, which made enrollment easier.
One of the most famous, if not the most famous, smart products created in Croatia is certainly the smart bench, whose inventor was included in the Forbes “30 under 30” list (30 promising entrepreneurs under 30). The bench provides access to the Wi-Fi network, has a wireless charger for mobile devices and 2 USB ports, and illuminates the area around it with LED lighting.
Besides all the good sides of smart cities, there are also bad sides. Some can already be guessed from the text so far.
The first is the most obvious, the possibility of security breaches and loss of privacy. Already, many human rights activists are fighting against the aggressive collection of data necessary for the functioning of a smart city. Life would be like that of George Orwell’s novel 1984, with cameras on every corner, and the daily collection of data on citizens’ lives would help the authorities understand every aspect of their lives, which could be pretty bad if that data fell into the wrong hands.
Another problem would be the lack of information and the technological illiteracy of a large part of the citizens. If the citizens themselves are not aware of the changes and do not know how to use them and thus play their role in the smart city system, all innovations and hundreds of billions invested in them will be in vain.
The sensors needed to operate a smart city run on batteries. Producing at least a trillion batteries for IoT devices is impossible and certainly bad in the long run because of all the harmful effects battery production has on the environment. Some tech companies are already working on wireless power transmission, which would power devices via radio waves. Sound like the distant future? It may not be that far, but so far such devices are still not in use, especially not in public.
Smart cities are the future, not so far away. Civilization advances every day and it is only a matter of time when technology and artificial intelligence will take over the daily tasks of the citizens of smart cities and thus free up even more time for creativity and art. Whether this will happen in ten or fifty years is hard to say, but there is no doubt that such a future is almost certain.