Smart City

A smart city is an urban development vision to integrate multiple information and communication technology (ICT) solutions in a secure fashion to manage a city’s assets

A smart city differs from a "normal" city in the way it employs technology to make urban centres more efficient, affordable, sustainable and, in the end, liveable. Cities around the world, including London, Boston, Bristol, Manchester, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Songdo and many more, have already jumped on the smart city bandwagon, incorporating innovative technology into their infrastructure. Governments in other countries are embracing smart cities as part of their federal initiatives – India is going all out and plans to build 100 smart cities.

Smart ICT Report Recommendations

The Smart ICT Report on the inquiry into the role of smart ICT in the design and planning of infrastructure. (By Australian Federal Government 2016) made the following recommendations:

Recommendation 1
The Committee recommends that the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development, the Department of Communications, and Geoscience Australia continue to build their smart ICT capacity, in partnership with private sector actors where appropriate. Where possible, these departments should seek to share their knowledge and thus build capacity with their state and local government counterparts.

Recommendation 2
The Committee recommends to the Australian Government that the proposed Smart Infrastructure Task Force take responsibility for the national coordination of:
 the development of national protocols for the release of infrastructure related data in both the government and private sectors, including creating mechanisms for the brokerage or sale of private sector data;
 the development of standards for the collection and management of infrastructure related data, including metadata standards; and
 an objects library.

Recommendation 3
The Committee recommends the Australian Government appoints and resources the National Archives of Australia to oversee the development of a whole-of-government strategy for the collection, management, storage and security of data related to the design, planning, operation and management of infrastructure.

Recommendation 4
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government recognise public safety communications systems as critical infrastructure, and continue to support the development of these systems, including funding research, promoting implementation, and providing national coordination.

Recommendation 5
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government continue to support the development of disaster planning and emergency response systems, including funding research, promoting implementation, and providing national coordination.

Recommendation 6
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government leads the formation of a suitably qualified and resourced Smart Infrastructure Task Force, led by Infrastructure Australia, on the model of the UK BIM Task Group, representing governments at all levels, academia and industry to provide for the coordination and implementation of smart ICT in the design, planning and development of infrastructure, and in the maintenance and optimisation of existing infrastructure. The Task Force will act as a coordinator and conduit for the development and implementation of policy nationally, including the development of industry and product standards and training and education. The Task Force will have responsibility for the development of a national strategy to accelerate the adoption of new technologies and innovations; and engage Australia with international experience and global best practice.

Recommendation 7
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government, as part of its infrastructure procurement processes, require BIM to LOD500 on all major infrastructure projects, exceeding $50 million in cost, receiving Australian Government funding, including projects partially funded by Federal Government in partnership with state, territory and local governments, and that it focus on tendering mechanisms that will facilitate this outcome, on a project-by-project basis, with a view to ultimately establishing BIM as a procurement standard.

Recommendation 8
The Committee recommends that the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development adopts a practice of examining whether the use of Smart ICT, in optimising the operation and maintenance of existing built infrastructure assets, can provide a more cost-effective solution than their physical replacement or upgrade.

Recommendation 9
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government, through COAG, works with state and territory governments to develop a national approach to the application of Smart ICT in the design and planning of infrastructure, particularly with respect to state government responsibilities in land management, utilities, and transport systems.

Recommendation 10
The Committee recommends that the Australian Government invite Infrastructure Australia to consider the use of smart ICT in infrastructure as a means of identifying savings that can be made in the short term.

Related Pages

Collaborators

The following people have indicated (via the Local Government Collaboration Topics Survey) that they have an interest and/or expertise in the topic of 'Smart Cities' and are willing to collaborate with their peers at other councils to identify challenges and resources relating to the topic and to look for ways to work together to overcome any challenges that are identified.

Contributors

The following site members have contributed to this page:

External Links & References

  1. Google Search
  2. Wikipedia
  3. Why Australia needs to get up to speed in creating smart and connected cities - Australian Financial Review (October 2015)
  4. Report on the inquiry into the role of smart ICT in the design and planning of infrastructure (March 2016)
  5. The six stages of the smart city challenge for local government - PBC Today (October 2016)
  6. How to build a smart city - Smart Cities DIVE (June 2017)
  7. ALGA Outlines Path to Smart Cities - Local Government Career (June 2017)
  8. to manage the smart city jigsaw - IoTHUB (February 2017)
  9. Code for Smart Communities
  10. Lessons from Adelaide in how a smart city can work to benefit everyone - The Conversation (18 August 2017)
  11. Google wants to run cities without being elected. Don't let it - The Guardian (24 October 2017)
  12. Bill Gates firm buys $80 million plot of land to create ‘smart city’ - New York Post (13 November 2017)
  13. Surprise! Digital space isn’t replacing public space, and might even help make it better - Sarah Barns (13 December 2017)
  14. Smart cities aren't just a buzzword, they're the solution to our problems - IPWEA (July 2018)
  15. Top Smart Cities - VerizonInternet.com
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