London Signs Up To Smart City Scheme

London has signed up to a new smart cities program that will see part of the capital trying out a range of pioneering connected technologies.

The Royal Borough of Greenwich has been signed up to the Smart Cities and Communities Lighthouse programme, which is part of a €25m project that will demonstrate how new technology can help develop and improve the lives of residents in a growing city.

Connected

Among the new technologies being trialled under the plan are a scheme to use the River Thames as a renewable energy source to provide affordable heat to local homes, and smart parking bays that aim to optimise parking spaces and help drivers find a space quickly and conveniently.

Also included are plans to test shared electric bikes to see if these support a shift from private cars, while electric vehicles will be piloted for local deliveries and car sharing, and installing solar panels on homes to provide green energy and improve energy efficiency. The supply and demand of energy will be locally managed by energy partners involved in the programme via state-of-the-art digital technology that will also reduce energy bills and carbon emissions.

The project will look to form part of the Mayor’s London Infrastructure Plan 2050, which looks to estimate and begin development of the full range of critical infrastructure requirements for the capital over the next half century, in which big data and smart technology is playing a major role.

The smart cities programme, which is also launching in Milan, Lisbon, Warsaw, Bordeaux and Burgas, will also look to develop a new model of sharing data across cities to make the best use of encyclopaedic amount of information now available that can be used to change the way cities, their communities and services work. This will deliver a common data sharing platform that can be used by all the programme cities and beyond.

“London is growing at a record rate and to support the city’s future growth, we need to harness our incredible technical prowess and look to what new approaches and technological innovation can bring,” said Mayor of London Boris Johnson.

“By leading this ground-breaking international project we will be able to share ideas with our European counterparts as we work to create a city that is fit for the future and an even greater place to live, work and visit.”

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