Page 47 - U4SSC Simple ways to be smart

3.4.1 Experiencing the city on foot

When more people in cities walk, they are healthier and cities are less polluted, noisy and
dangerous. Walking in cities can be encouraged by improving the walkability of streets. Researchers
have developed a simple tool to assess the walkability of city streets. This tool, in the form of
a spreadsheet, is easy to apply and to adapt to local conditions. Making use of an assessment
tool like this can help the city to identify ways in which walkability can be improved, and also to
prioritise where such improvements should be made. In general, work that improves city surfaces
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and removes obstacles is simple and smart because it also benefits people pushing prams, using
wheelchairs, or wheeling their groceries home in a cart.

One important aspect of walkability is the need for streets, parks and parking lots to be well lit.
Streets that are well-lit are safer and more pleasant to walk in after dark. Smart lighting not only
provides light, and manages the cost and energy consumption involved, it can also turn street-lights
into an intelligent resource providing services such as Internet access, environmental sensors, crime
detection and traffic monitors. Adding Internet access to street-lights changes the experience of the
street for pedestrians who are able to access information and entertainment as they move through
these spaces. In Case 7 we examine smart street lighting solutions as a simple and scalable smart
intervention for cities.

Active transport includes transport modes like scooters and cycles that are human-powered. These
modes of transport give people the ability to travel a bit further than when walking, and so can
provide good connections between where people live and public transport; the ‘last mile’. It may
be possible for cities to better accommodate such modes of transport with minimal change to
infrastructure, by, for example, reallocating street space to bicycles, or identifying and paving areas
that connect spaces. Many cities are making use of private or public bike-sharing systems. Such
systems have been very successful in some cities, but have created problems of congestion, waste
and safety in other cities. Cities that are interested in exploring such solutions need to carefully
assess their suitability for the local context.

3.4.2 Public and private transport

The experience of cities is greatly enhanced by an effective public transport system that enables
people to move around the city using a range of transport options. While major long-term changes
to public transport are seldom simple, there are smart interventions that can be implemented easily.
One of these is the creation of a public transport information system, using the freely available
Google Transit platform. Using standards, open protocols, interoperable components and already
existing solutions can all contribute to keeping smart interventions simple. If city residents or visitors
have to interact with a solution, adopting a well-known application has even more benefits, as it
reduces the challenge of learning to use it. The public transport information system described in
Case 8 is a good example. It uses a very popular solution, already known and used by more than
1 billion people.

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