Greenwich smart city strategy

Copenhagen (compared to 10% in 2006). More broadly the investment has resulted in savings
to the municipality and the opportunity to transform public services, the ability to roll out 4G
mobile services swiftly, and a rise in the quality of jobs. Furthermore, like other 1 Gigabit cities,
Stockholm will be well placed to roll out the next wave of mobile infrastructure, 5G.
3.05 The concept of the 1 Gigabit City, powered by fibre to the home, is also catching on in the UK.
Small to medium sized towns and cities such as Peterborough, York, Aberdeen and Edinburgh
have begun to attract private sector investment in widespread fibre deployment to homes and
small businesses.
3.06 Greenwich is also a strong candidate for an urban 5G trial, building on a commitment to fibre,
which will be needed to backhaul the wireless network traffic. By focusing on low latency
network applications, Greenwich can build a faster smart city infrastructure, and demonstrate
the business case of this emerging technology.
The Greenwich Vision
3.07 A fast, affordable digital infrastructure is central to the Council’s objectives – for the economy,
for service transformation, for stronger neighbourhoods and communities. In Greenwich, where
micro-businesses, with 1-10 employees, account for by far the largest share of employment
and GVA, where 18 million visitors each year expect to be able to upload relevant information
instantly and to be able to connect with family and friends, where a key objective is to transform
public services for the benefit of all citizens, e.g. through pervasive public Wi-Fi services; and to
be at the forefront of 5G roll out, in order to strengthen the digital cluster located here and to
improve the quality of jobs and income, it is vital that connectivity is competitive and “future
proof”.
3.08 Our aim is that the Greenwich of the future will offer its community, and visitors, connectivity on
a par with other cities in Europe, at an affordable price.
The Council will therefore:
- conduct an Open Market Review to identify, from private sector service providers,
the existing and planned infrastructure for the Borough;
- consult network equipment providers over their technology roadmaps;
- carry out an audit of its own assets and contracts related to ICT to obtain a full
picture of how it might work with partners and identify any potential barriers to
progress;
- consult private sector users, in order to form a view on future demand;
- consider the evidence, in consultation with the Regulator, DCMS and the EU
Commission, and set out its strategy in the Spring of 2016.
3.09 The ability of devices to communicate is already transforming industrial operations and supply
chains, the delivery of services, and life in the home; it will transform the delivery of public
services as well. For example, at a simple level, embedded sensors will enable the remote testing
of assets, such as street lighting, helping identify when lights are close to failing, rather than after
they have failed. More sophisticated applications of digital technologies include a combination
of sensor and communication technologies and this would enable a whole range of applications
including:
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