In the continuing quest for smarter cities, the White House has announced the dedication of 160-million dollars toward the integration of sensors and data collection in cities across the United States. The new initiative strives to produce better, real-time data for local organizations, companies and governments to improve responses, both in time and effectiveness. The initiative broadly covers various organizations and federal grants, but hopes to address issues like crime, traffic congestion and climate change. Read more after the break.
The majority of the funding is being given to three organizations: The National Science Foundation ($35 million), The Department of Homeland Security ($50 million) and The Department of Transportation ($40 million). Additional funding is going to the Department of Energy, the EPA and the Census Bureau, as well as creating research communities to compete and collaborate on the relevant tools and technologies. IBM will organize events, and AT&T will use 10 cities as a test-bed for monitoring lighting, traffic management and parking.
Solutions being addressed in this new proposal include integrating computers into buildings and cars; improving the effectiveness and efficiency of first-responders; and wiring traffic signals to talk to cars. However, for the government, the creation of “smart cities” is not a simple matter of implementing new technology and infrastructure, but a series of processes which will change as more information is received.
News via The Verge and The White House
