From small towns to urban metropolitan areas, local governments across the United States are employing smart city initiatives to future-proof their cities, writes the sustainable manufacturing specialist Johnson Controls in a statement. In partnership with the platform Smart Cities Dive, it has now conducted a national survey of over 100 city leaders to uncover the greatest motivators behind their smart city transformations.
According to the results, 44 per cent of respondents cite “quality of life” as the driving factor behind their smart city initiatives, followed by “citizen expectations” (36 per cent), and “environmental risk” and “economic risk” (both 35 per cent). Johnson Controls reported that local government leaders are making tangible progress, with 76 per cent of respondents either on track or ahead of schedule in achieving their smart city objectives. Their top priorities are transportation (47 per cent), renewable energy (45 per cent) and education (43 per cent).
The study found that the biggest obstacle to these objectives was the significant changes the initiatives would require governments to make, with nearly 70 per cent of respondents saying that achieving their priorities would require either a “moderate amount or a lot of change”. Additional barriers included “competing priorities, changing market conditions and inadequate staff time and expertise”. In facing these challenges, community leaders reported that partnerships are “extremely or very important”.
Johnson Controls offers solutions and services to local governments across the United States, including Philadelphia, where it is helping to decarbonize historic buildings, and Lansing, which is working with Johnson Controls to meet its 2050 carbon neutrality goal.
