Smart Cities

The City Council has approved buying software and equipment to underpin an online portal capable of tracking water use daily or hourly. It could help residents who use it spot leaks and call out emergencies.

Part of a “regional transportation hub,” the new center also features a STEM center for young adults. The complex, which showcases a library, houses what is believed to be the nation’s largest public EV charging station.

A City Council committee will consider next week a new contract with the company that provides the gunshot-detecting tech. Chicago and Seattle have moved away from it, and Houston's mayor has indicated he wants the city to drop it.

Per capita broadband infrastructure funding is highest in rural states, a new report finds, even though the digital divide exists in all areas. Reviews.org examines funding states are receiving from the $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program.

The result of a legislative overhaul, the move by the state transportation department impacts many, but not all, local traffic cameras. A new law requires the cameras be permitted.

City officials will begin working to forecast pothole hot spots in order to find and fill holes that have gone unreported. An audit last spring recommended using mapping software to reduce the distances between pothole jobs; the city will explore it.

At the midpoint of smart curb projects, city transportation leaders across the country are reflecting on the broader impacts this work can have — and how they might unlock progress in the future.

As transit organizations face hard choices related to reduced funding levels, industry observers say new forms of granular, location-based data will be needed to restructure for new realities and priorities.

The Windy City’s contract for the gun detection service will expire shortly, but two aldermen have launched attempts to extend it. A parliamentary move or a special vote could potentially compel an extension.

Several new projects in Michigan, California and Florida explore the use of small, electric, autonomous vehicles operating alongside, or within existing, transit services. Public-private partnerships are key to their success, an official said.

The city has deployed 15 Flock Safety cameras to photograph vehicle license plates and alert on those being sought. The system, officials have said, is not used for immigration enforcement, and use is closely scrutinized.

A cross-sector partnership has helped pave the way for electric AV shuttles to start rolling off the assembly line in Florida by the middle of 2026, meeting Buy America requirements.

The utility ComEd is working with Illinois nonprofit QUILT to improve middle-mile broadband infrastructure across Chicago’s South and West sides while reducing costs. The initiative is enabled by a federal grant.

Sheriff’s deputies’ vehicles will soon be able to scan license plates and check drivers’ criminal records, in an expansion of the technology. Funding is coming via a grant from the federal Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs.

Four technology companies are part of the city’s initiative, which is aimed at growing its tech industry and making strides in smart city and digital government work. A Living Lab facility is in the works.

Its newly launched Local Government Research and Development Agenda, a nationwide undertaking, looks to provide research and science to cities. Interviews and workshops with 20 munis are underway.

Cities around the nation are taking on projects to gather and analyze vast amounts of digital data points related to curb usage. This can enable new forms of delivery and dynamic parking prices.

The agency is testing technology from ZeroEyes to identify guns in its “L” stations. It will send images to a company operations center for review before alerting law enforcement and public officials. Testing will run through summer 2025.