Smart place is working to improve transport and reduce our impact on the environment through digital technology solutions.

Promoting sustainable travel

High quality, real-time and easy to understand transport information is really important in encouraging people to use more sustainable transport such as buses, trains and rental bikes.

Air quality monitoring and intervention

Public Health England reports that air pollution is the biggest environmental threat to health in the UK, with between 28,000 and 36,000 deaths a year attributed to long-term exposure. Pollutants not only severely impact health, but also climate and ecosystems. Air pollutants, such as methane and black carbon, are powerful short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) that contribute to climate change.

Protecting cyclists

The BCP Council area has one of the highest cycling casualty rates nationally. We want to encourage sustainable travel and in order to encourage people to cycle and walk it is important that they feel safe.

Highway network management and co-ordination

The BCP area is one of the most congested nationally. Congestion contributes to poor air quality and traffic delays have a significant impact upon the local economy. There is also the need to prioritise bus movements in order to encourage people to use public transport.

Highway asset management

We have a legal duty to manage and maintain the highway. A regular schedule-based approach to highway asset management can result in higher costs through avoidable visits. National guidance now recommends that highway authorities take a risk-based approach for particular maintenance activities.

Public asset monitoring and warning

We are responsible for some important public assets including roads, car parks, the seafront and flood defences. Knowing that these assets are performing as they should or are potentially at risk is important for public safety and amenity.

Waste management optimisation

From an operational cost perspective, refuse and recycling is one of the Council’s largest spend areas. Smart technology including sensors in bins to detect when they need emptying, refuse vehicle route optimisation and other logistic measures can not only lead to greater efficiency but result in higher levels of customer service and satisfaction.

Efficient energy management

BCP Council has declared a Climate and Ecological Emergency. In order to meet carbon reduction targets, energy consumption needs to reduce and be more efficient.

Knowledge of why, where, how and when energy is consumed enables informed decisions to be made on how to reduce demand. Emerging information and control technologies enable smarter management of energy consumption as well as providing insights into how energy demand can be reduced.

Improving community safety

Crime, or the fear of crime, can sometimes lead to people being reluctant to make the most of their local communities and environment. Creating a safer place, with appropriate use of technology, can help to overcome these barriers

Revitalising the high street

As in many towns and cities local high streets are currently failing to compete with online shopping, leading to a number of retail shops closing with knock-on impacts upon the local economy. Significant value is escaping from the local economy through e-commerce.

Supporting tourism

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole attracts millions of visitors each year and the tourism industry is a major aspect of the local economy. In order to continue to maintain our status as one of the UK’s premier places to visit it is important that the area makes the most of emerging, place-based technology.

Housing management

Ensuring that housing stock is maintained to a high level can involve significant costs, typically through regular maintenance visits. The ability to monitor housing assets remotely can help ensure good living conditions. It can also reduce maintenance costs for local authorities and housing associations as well as provide intelligence for improvement or housing replacement programmes.