Page 22 - A U4SSC deliverable - Accelerating city transformation using frontier technologies

The Internet of things

IoT and a connected city

With more than half of the world’s population already living in cities and another 2.5 billion people
expected to move into urban areas by 2050, cities will need to be more efficient, sustainable and
resilient in order to keep up with this migration trend and continue to deliver the basic necessities to
all citizens, leaving no one behind.
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The Internet of things (IoT) can provide cities with the ability to collect and analyse data on key
infrastructure and public utilities and services. Intelligent sensors, networks, devices, and applications
enable cities to monitor energy usage, traffic congestion, air quality, quality of city services, climate
changes, natural disasters and more. In theory, anything can be connected to the Internet by installing
various kinds of IoT devices. Buildings are being made more energy efficient by installing IoT sensors to
reduce energy usage during peak hours. Energy grids are distributing energy more efficiently by being
able to respond to energy demand in real time. Data-driven applications are also being developed to
improve public safety. Predictive insights have successfully already allowed city officials to monitor
damaged infrastructure before it collapses, locate missing persons based on information from their
IoT enabled trackers or even assist in policy detective works. The potential of IoT in improving cities’
sustainability and resiliency is vast and highly promising.

“It is forecast that smart city investment will reach $158 billion by 2022”

Given its immense potential, many
cities around the world are investing
heavily in IoT. It is forecast that smart
city investment will reach USD 158
billion by 2022. The number of
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connected devices could also rise
to 30 billion by 2025. Similar to
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London, Copenhagen, Denmark has
implemented intelligent sensors to
monitor the city’s bike traffic in real
time, providing valuable data that
would improve bike routes and cyclists’
experience in the city. New York City,
US experimented with a connected car
programme in 2015. The data have allowed city officials to identify the locations where drivers would
be most likely to make a hard braking action because of traffic, and to improve road conditions and
reduce congestion accordingly. In 2018, Montreal, Quebec, Canada invested $110 million CAD to
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covert 132 500 streetlights into smart streetlights, enabling the city to monitor lighting performance

12 Accelerating city transformation using frontier technologies | A U4SSC deliverable