Low level awareness and interest poses big industry and government challenges.

UK citizens lack knowledge about smart cities, putting this IoT vertical in jeopardy, a nationwide survey carried by the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) has found.

In the report "Smart Cities - Time to involve the people", the UK organisation unveiled that only two in ten (18%) of the population has heard of a 'smart city'.

The IET alerts that there is a real danger that smart cities in the UK may be developed without sufficient insight into what people actually want them to deliver.

Awareness of 'smart cities 'is lowest amongst those aged over 65 (6%) and highest among those aged 18-34 (37%).

Of the 531 people surveyed, one third was unable to select the correct definition of a smart city from a list of options.

Eight percent of respondents said a smart city is "a city that has a higher than average proportion of universities and colleges and aims to attract the most intellectual".

A further 5% saw it as "a city that has a strict cleaning regime for its buildings, roads and public places".

According to the IET, a smart city uses modern digital communications technology to monitor, manage and enhance key infrastructure and public services. This can include transport and traffic management, energy, water and waste management, healthcare and other community services.

Asked about what they believe is the most useful asset of a smart city, 29% of respondents said intelligent streetlights, which are activated by movement, automatically adjust to improve safety, deter crime, and save energy are useful.

This is followed by 25% that support green buildings that monitor energy consumption and distribution and also collect and recycle water and waste.

Twenty-three percent said sensors embedded in roads and buildings which measure traffic flow and predict congestion are also useful.

Only 15% saw some value in up-to-the-minute travel updates delivered to a smartphone and 8% rated driverless or electric vehicles hired or ordered from smartphones as the least useful application in a smart city.

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