Singapore came top, with Barcelona, London, San Francisco and Oslo following on behind. Juniper’s Smart City rankings have been compiled following an extensive study of cities around the globe, as published in the company’s report Worldwide Smart Cities: Energy, Transport & Lighting 2016-2021. The cities have been evaluated according to some 40 metrics, including technology, transport, energy, open data and economy.
The company found that Singapore is the leading country with regard to smart mobility policies and technology. It was the city’s fixed and cellular broadband services, city apps and strong open data policy led to it taking the top spot for 2016.
“Congestion and mobility are almost universal issues for cities to address” said research author Steffen Sorrell. “When addressed effectively, the impacts are substantial: higher economic productivity, potential for new revenue streams and services as well as a measurable benefit in reduced healthcare costs”.
2015’s Global Smart City, Barcelona, was found to be particularly strong with regards to its energy and sustainability policies. London’s score suffered as a result of weak renewable energy sourcing and relatively poor energy use reduction initiatives.
The research also found that deployment of smart grid technologies has found its way onto the agenda for many cities across the globe, driven to a large extent by a shift towards new renewable energy sources such as solar power and wind generation, alongside increased pressure on resources from urban migration. This is particularly true for North America and parts of Asia which show strong investment in renewable energy technologies.
Meanwhile, Europe has seen smart grid progress slow owing to market unbundling which has led to a fragmented distribution grid landscape. Nevertheless, the ‘end-game’ is expected to deliver a market more open to innovation and new services.
Overall, Juniper anticipates that the smart grid technology deployment will deliver $18.8 billion in cost savings in 2021. This will be achieved through reduced energy use and avoided economic costs from emissions. The reduced emissions are equivalent to those produced by nearly 15 million homes annually.
The whitepaper, Smart Cities ~ On the Faster Track to Success, is available to download from the Juniper website together with further details of the full research.
Juniper Research provides research and analytical services to the global hi-tech communications sector, providing consultancy, analyst reports and industry commentary.
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