Currently, nearly 32% of French cities have begun to think about a de smart city project.[1] What has long been considered only a concept is now becoming a concrete reality. According to its promoters, the smart city will offer interesting opportunities for both territories and users.
What is a smart territory?
An idea dear to urban planners and local authorities alike, the notion of intelligent territory is also known as “smart city” or “smart territory”. It refers to habitable areas that have been completely redesigned and reconfigured for the benefit of the people who live and work there.
Looking to the future and based on innovation, the smart territory seeks to meet the new needs of professionals and individuals. Working for the community and the common good are two objectives that constitute the DNA of smart territories.
Developed to meet the challenges of tomorrow in terms of transport, public buildings or waste management, the concept of smart city does not only concern large cities. More and more rural areas, such as Baugy in the Cher, are trying to establish a harmonious relationship between digital uses and rurality.[2]
The implementation of such a project aims to simplify the life of people living far from the major cities, but also to improve the attractiveness of rural communities.
The city’s inhabitants at the heart of the smart city
For large cities, as well as for rural areas, the implementation of smart city projects must meet various challenges. Designed for collective purposes, the smart territory focuses on citizens and the way they interact with the urban environment:
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- public buildings,
- shops,
- transport,
- etc.
In the context of transport in the smart city, for example, it is a question of finding solutions to optimise urban mobility and to make traffic flow more smoothly in large cities. In this context, technological innovations take centre stage. In Paris, for example, the RATP uses NFC technology to provide a real-time information service.
A real opportunity for territories and their users, the smart city relies on the interactions between the various players:
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- local authorities,
- public market players,
- etc.
From public lighting to means of transport, the reflection revolves around the implementation of a sustainable city that can guarantee the comfort of its inhabitants.
From this point of view, the involvement of citizens in public life is essential, as is the optimization of networks and the proper management of territorial data. Result of a collaboration between different actors including citizens, the smart city is synonymous with diversity, sustainability and efficiency.
[1] WOUSSEN.D, (2019), “La smart city, une opportunité pour tous les territoires”, JournalduNet
[2] BERKOVICIUS.C, (2020), “Centre-Val de Loire : à Baugy, la smart city se met au vert”, LeMoniteur