Singapore, Helsinki and Zurich are at the top of the Smart City 2020 index, in a year that has seen many European cities fall in the rankings.
The Smart City Index ranks cities on the basis of economic and technological data, but also on the perception of “intelligence” that citizens have of the
of their city.
The Institute for Management Development, in collaboration with Singapore University for Technology and Design (SUTD), published the Smart City Index 2020, the role of technology will be increasingly crucial in the post-COVID-19 era.
Hundreds of citizens from 109 cities were interviewed in April and May 2020 and asked questions about the arrangements technology of their city in five key areas: health and safety, mobility, activities, opportunities and governance.
“It is obviously too early to learn the lessons from COVID, however, it is clear that we are at a critical juncture, where the health crisis is still very much present, while the
The economic and social crisis it will bring has only just begun.
This year’s Smart City Index suggests that cities that have succeeded in combining
technologies, energy saving, leadership and a strong culture of “living and acting together” should be better able to withstand the most damaging effects of such technologies.
crisis,” said Bruno Lanvin, President of IMD’s Smart City Observatory.
In the face of growing urbanisation, more and more cities are aspiring to become smart cities and one of the starting points is certainly street smart and connected lighting systems.
The transformation of light poles into connected streetlights has become an important ingredient of digital transformation strategies for many cities.
But it is not enough to upgrade street lighting systems with more energy efficient LED sources to make the leap forward.
Although switching to LED technology is already achieving immediate results in terms of energy efficiency and cost reduction, connected street lighting is essential in the near future.