Smart Cities – The better City?
Countless articles have already been written about Smart Cities and there is much to read about it. It is a city that should manage resources intelligently and aim to be economically sustainable and energy self-sufficient. The focus is on the quality of life and the needs of its citizens. In the ideal smart city, as presented in the literature and theory, there is a high degree of networking and digitalization. Crossroads with intelligent traffic lights, self-driving cars, self-regulating heating and air-conditioning systems, and the autonomous exchange of data between objects should be possible. But there should also be wide green areas and parks. Oases of peace in the middle of the city to relax, meet people and stress relief. The ideal traffic is fluid and a multi-diverse mobility of bicycles, pedestrians, public transport and hybrid or electric cars is the goal. This includes in particular no longer using the own car, but utilize car or bike sharing services.
For all these reasons, the smart city is logically peppered with various sensors that generate a large amount of data and enable services in real time.
Smart Cities and resources
Smart cities then, seem to be cities that are not only more technological than today’s cities, but also more sustainable. The aim is to use natural resources sensibly and wise.
But as with so many things in life there are not only positive aspects. There are also critical voices about the cities of the future. You don’t have to share them, but they do deserve attention. With so much control and data management, will the city still have room for free spirits and creativity? Who all has access to technological advances? Only those who can afford it or everyone who lives in the city? How high will energy consumption be and can it be covered by renewable energy sources? Who manages the wealth of data collected and who has access to it?
On the way to the smart city, there are still many questions and important problems to be solved. Not only technological obstacles but also social, legal, ecological and ethical issues need to be considered and solved to make the city of the future a truly beautiful and livable place.