The technologies behind the development of a smart city are improving living conditions around the globe—so much so that MarketsandMarkets expects the market size of smart cities to grow from $308 billion in 2018 to $717.2 billion by 2023, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 18.4 percent. The adoption rate of smart cities solutions is expected to grow, owing to the increasing demand for public safety and communications infrastructure, growing number of citizen empowerment and engagement, and rising urban population.
The benefits of developing smart cities are immense, and well documented. Here are a few examples cited by a TechTarget report from IoT Agenda:
The smart city initiative of Kansas City, Mo., involves smart streetlights, interactive kiosks and more than 50 blocks of free public Wi-Fi along the city’s two-mile streetcar route. Available parking spaces, traffic flow and pedestrian hotspots are all publically available through the city’s data visualization app.
San Diego installed 3,200 smart sensors in early 2017 to optimize traffic and parking and enhance public safety, environmental awareness and overall livability for its residents. Solar-to-electric charging stations are available to empower electric vehicle use, and connected cameras help monitor traffic and pinpoint crime.
Often considered the gold standard of smart cities, the city-state of Singapore uses sensors and IoT-enabled cameras to monitor the cleanliness of public spaces, crowd density and the movement of locally registered vehicles. Its smart technologies help companies and residents monitor energy use, waste production and water use in real time. Singapore is also testing autonomous vehicles, including full-size robotic buses, as well as an elderly monitoring system to ensure the health and well-being of its senior citizens.
In Dubai, United Arab Emirates, smart city technology is used for traffic routing, parking, infrastructure planning and transportation. The city also uses telemedicine and smart healthcare, as well as smart buildings, smart utilities, smart education and smart tourism.
The Barcelona, Spain, smart transportation system and smart bus systems are complemented by smart bus stops that provide free Wi-Fi, USB charging stations and bus schedule updates for riders. A bike-sharing program and smart parking app that includes online payment options are also available. The city also uses sensors to monitor temperature, pollution and noise, as well as monitor humidity and rain levels.
According to MarketsandMakets, the key and emerging market players include Cisco Systems (US), IBM (US), Siemens AG (Germany), Schneider Electric (France), Ericsson (Sweden), Vodafone (UK), Itron Inc. (US), Verizon (US), Telensa (England), ABB (Switzerland), Honeywell International Inc. (US), SAP SE (Germany), KAPSCH Group (Austria), and AGT International (Switzerland).
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