Royal Greenwich recognised as smart city innovator

Commissioned by the global technology giant Huawei, the UK Smart Cities Index, 2017 compared 20 UK cities on how they are using smart city technology to tackle urban challenges. It judged London and Bristol to be the UK’s two leading smart cities, highlighting the considerable progress in several London boroughs, “notably in the ambitious Digital Greenwich programme”.

The report highlighted that Royal Greenwich is home to several advanced transport innovation projects - many of London’s ground-breaking transport investments are coming together as players in the myriad of projects supported by Digital Greenwich, establishing the Royal Borough as a hub for transport innovation, and also for its work in developing and testing a sustainable energy management system. The report judged one of the most ambitious smart city programmes to have been launched by the Royal Borough of Greenwich, led by the Digital Greenwich team.

The study highlighted that Greenwich is the London demonstration area for Sharing Cities - a €25million EU Horizon 2020 project led by London, Milan, and Lisbon. The 3-year project, launched in January 2016, is developing, deploying, and integrating replicable solutions across the energy, transport, data, and information and communications technologies (ICT) sectors. The London projects include energy efficiency, renewable energy, urban mobility, and smart parking projects. One of the most ambitious projects is the development of a sustainable energy management system (SEMS) that is consolidating and analysing energy data from smart meters and other intelligent devices, to optimise energy production and consumption at a community-level. The SEMS also links to the broader urban data platform being developed as part of the Sharing Cities programme.

The study stressed that digital innovation combines the development of city strategies for IT and communications technologies, and specific projects to understand the opportunities they offer for improving city services through pilots and demonstration projects. Royal Greenwich was highlighted as one of the city boroughs that had created a test bed for new solutions that address urban challenges.

Commenting on the report, Councillor Denise Hyland, Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich said:

“Our comprehensive Smart City Strategy, published in 2015, set out our determination to use advances in technology, data analytics and new approaches, to drive innovation to address the modern day pressures that our cities face and the increased pressure on infrastructure, services and the environment.

“We have sought to put the Royal Borough of Greenwich at the forefront of city innovation. I am delighted our work, and that of our partners, has been recognised in this comprehensive assessment of UK cities. It reflects our comprehensive approach to city innovation, which we believe holds the key to improving the environment, improving services, strengthening our local economy, and increasing the efficiency of our city infrastructure, for the benefit of local residents and businesses, today and in the future.”