From traffic lights to first responders, agencies implement 4G LTE as part of smart city initiatives
The definition of “Smart City” is seemingly as broad as its potential. To some, it’s about building roadways with sensors embedded in the ground. The next person might view first responders as the best example of Smart City technology. Others include schools and healthcare in their Smart City vernacular.
While the definition and scope of Smart Cities is up for debate, most agree on the benefits of these technologies: increased operational efficiency for governments — much of which is based on actionable IoT data — and improved services and quality of life for citizens.
“A smart city is a municipality that uses information and communication technologies to increase operational efficiency, share information with the public, and improve both the quality of government services and citizen welfare,” according to TechTarget. Even this excellent definition of a Smart City barely scratches the surface at conveying what’s possible in cities, states, and countries in every area of the world.
Gartner notes that “Urban challenges such as safety and security, traffic congestion, aging infrastructure, and even responses to events like climate change and disasters have often been addressed by silo-based departments. However, more and more city governments are moving toward smart city solutions that leverage IoT technologies.”
For many governments, 4G LTE — with 5G on the horizon — and cloud-based network management are providing the reliability, visibility, and flexibility necessary to keep Smart City edge technologies connected to agency networks at all times.
Police Vehicles
Police vehicles ensure access to mission-critical applications and communication tools by leveraging dual-modem in-vehicle routers that support instant failover from one carrier to another, as well as intelligent traffic steering based on performance factors such as latency, jitter, signal strength, and data usage.
Schools
Whether on campus or on the bus, students are benefitting from 4G LTE solutions that provide constant access to WiFi and to the swiftly expanding number of online education apps that are part of their day-to-day learning.
Fire Apparatus
The ability of firefighters to access building schematics, HazMat data, and traffic information en route to a blaze improves response time and better prepares them for the dangerous scenario at hand.
Video Surveillance
With remote access to video surveillance, agencies can capture and analyze video footage to pinpoint and prevent theft, illegal dumping, and other suspicious activity. As 5G rolls out and evolves, live streaming of surveillance footage will become more common.
Public Transit
Vehicle tracking, telematics, real-time route data for riders, passenger WiFi, on-board CCTV surveillance, and digital fare boxes are among the many connected technologies used on today’s metro buses. Transit fleet managers also use cloud management tools to make firmware, configuration, and security updates without having to bring every vehicle to headquarters.
Explore More Smart City Use Cases
Download our Smart City white paper for more examples of how cloud-managed 4G LTE is benefitting communities around the globe.
