Smart cities are something I’ve touched on a bit recently, with an article on INSEAD the latest to highlight the benefits to citizens and institutions of having smarter urban areas.

It’s a message that I think is fairly obvious, yet a recent report from the Institution of Engineering and Technology suggests that the message isn’t getting through to the general public.

Lack of public engagement

The report reveals a surprisingly low level of interest in the kind of technologies that we ordinarily associate with smart cities.  For instance, just 8% of respondents believed being able to order a driverless vehicle via your phone was useful.

The authors believe this is largely because those responsible for the roll-out of smart city type technologies seldom involve the public in their decision making processes.  This contributes to a distinct lack of buy-in by the public in the technology.  What’s more, this is despite the early successes of platforms such as Airbnb and Uber.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the report reveals that this scepticism is highest amongst the over 65’s, with those in the 18-34 age group the most on board with the coming changes.

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