Smart cities will become “commonplace” in the next ten years, according to more than 50% of respondents in a recent poll by Wi-SUN Alliance.
The results of the survey, conducted by a global ecosystem of member companies seeking to accelerate the implementation of Field Area Networks (FAN) and the Internet of Things (IoT), also show that 15% of respondents expect the rise of smart cities to take place in the next five years.
Of the key obstacles facing smart cities’ development, half of those polled suggested that a lack of investment is the biggest barrier currently holding the technological movement back.
Other factors cited include security and privacy issues, as well as the current absence of full interoperability.
With ports and terminals serving as key economic centres in a number of major cities worldwide, the owners and operators of these vital trade hubs need to understand where they fit… #PTIDaily #SmartCities #digitization https://t.co/eETQwb0zqb
— Port Technology (PTI) (@PortTechnology) June 11, 2019
The matter of security, a key concern with regard to the growth of smart cities, has raised a number of questions from those surveyed, with 37% pointing to data privacy as their biggest worry, while attacks on critical infrastructure and network vulnerabilities remain an issue for many.
Phil Beecher, President and CEO of Wi-SUN Alliance, commented: “It’s interesting to see the timeframe that many of our respondents place on smart city deployment, when in fact smart cities are already here.
“Smart lighting is being deployed using canopy mesh networks and is already helping to save operational costs through reduced energy consumption and better reliability.
“These deployments can be used to improve public safety and for additional services such as intelligent transport systems, smart parking and electric vehicle charging stations.”
Julian Galvis, Identec Solutions, discusses why we should invest in IoT in a recent Port Technology technical paper
In addition to this, Beecher addressed security concerns and asserted that “security and interoperability remain critical factors”.
He said: “As more IoT devices connect to the network, the opportunity for major disruption through security vulnerabilities is increasing all the time, while greater IT/OT (operational technology) convergence, especially in utilities, will increase the risk of attacks on critical infrastructure.”
