Free Paper Sample on Smart Cities: Navigating Dubai's Technological Evolution

A smart city refers to a community that is sustainable, efficient, and livable. In recent times, the term smart city has become more famous within the sector of urban planning (Zanella et al., 2014). Smart cities could work as a mechanism for controlling the effects of rapid urbanization and the challenges linked with the exponentially increasing population in countries across the world. The primary goals of smart cities include the provision of digital approaches for promoting social needs in the current daily transactions and the collection of information from citizens and public departments to encourage sustainable growth within the cities. The concept of developing smart cities across the globe is gaining popularity. Over the last decade, many smart city initiatives have been initiated in cities like Amsterdam, Dubai, Los Angeles, and Barcelona. Attaining a smart city involves addressing four main development pillars: social, physical, institutional, and economic infrastructure (Letaifa, 2015). Dubai has become the first smart city in the Middle East, but more initiatives can be adopted to make the city smarter.

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For instance, I propose a complete digitization of the city to ensure all city operations are controlled using technology. Thus, integrating communication and technology (Internet of Things- IoT) in the city's physical infrastructure will improve mobility, security, and service delivery in the city. IoT devices can be used to directly transfer information on essential services like water, electricity, waste management, and coordination of emergency response to the city administration (Talari et al., 2017). Currently, Dubai's transport infrastructure is excellent. But integrating technology into the transport system would make the city transport system even smarter. Installing Internet of Things devices on the city's transport infrastructure would make mobility in Dubai easy, quick, and safe. The city should continue to heavily invest in ICT infrastructure, including high-speed internet connectivity (Zanella et al., 2014).

Smart cities also embrace a smart environment. Dubai can integrate technology to ensure the city environment is sustainable. For example, using technology to install a network of air quality monitoring gadgets, monitoring vehicle levels emissions, and using technology to create tariffs to control power and water usage will ensure the Dubai city environment is even smarter. Lastly, smart cities need to have a smart administration. The Dubai city administration should digitize most of its operations to enable residents to access services from home or office to reduce the need to travel to government offices (Zanella et al., 2014). Dubai should invest in smart energy, including smart grids and smart meters. The city should also invest in the best water management practices that address water quality, utilization, and availability. Such initiatives are focused on effectiveness and efficiency in the delivery of services and products. Dubai should also invest in reducing carbon emissions and smarter waste management practices such as the use of smart and well-managed landfills.

I propose that Dubai needs to embrace smart devices for data collection and smart devices and infrastructure for communication between the control centers and the servers (Zanella et al., 2014). For instance, I propose that Dubai and other smart cities should have sensors along the roads to collect necessary information regarding traffic congestion and road conditions. Such cities should also install smart meters within offices and houses to collect data on electricity consumption. Smart cities need a communication layer that encourages the connection and interaction of various devices while ensuring integrity, interoperability, privacy, and scalability. Thus, an integrated strategy should involve service providers, communication infrastructure providers, city governments, and IT vendors.

Most cities face challenges relating to transportation, such as congestion that overloads the infrastructure. I propose that Dubai should adopt a smart traffic routing system. This involves the use of smart sensors along the highways so that the signals obtained are used in the detection of traffic flows. Such back-end systems permit the analysis of the traffic flows, thus helping to reduce congestion. Dubai could also adopt Apps on smartphones that give real-time updates on the traffic conditions to all the passengers. The most applicable example of how to implement a smart traffic system is the TrafiCam x-system in Moscow. I also propose that smart cities could also adopt the smart parking approach to ease the challenges within the transport sector. Smart parking involves embedding wireless sensors in parking spots. These sensors send information to a central system, after which it is transferred to the smartphones of the users who are searching for parking spots. Examples of such parking systems are the Parker by Streetline in New York City and the MobyPark in the Netherlands (Mehmood et al., 2017).

Furthermore, when new technology is effectively adopted, they have the potential to change the efficacy, delivery, and efficiency of healthcare services within the smart cities (Talari et al., 2017). I propose that Dubai can adopt telemedicine to facilitate remote monitoring of chronic diseases by health workers. Again, smart cities should encourage the use of consolidated digital health records so that patients and doctors can access their treatments, diagnoses, and laboratory tests online and on demand. This will improve the accuracy and efficiency of healthcare service provision (Zanella et al., 2014). Bristol, for instance, has made significant steps in implementing smart healthcare services through the adoption of the SPHERE (Sensors Platform Healthcare in a Residential Environment) to monitor people's health in their homes.

Again, I propose that smart cities should adopt new technologies and policies to construct buildings that are environmentally friendly and energy-efficient to improve the quality of life and the health of the residents. This could be achieved through the implementation of Building Information Modelling (BIM), which provides essential insights that help in smart planning, designing, construction, and management of the infrastructure and buildings. Dubai can also fit smart wireless sensors on the buildings to collect information associated with ventilation, energy consumption, humidity control, HVAC, and lighting (Mehmood et al., 2017). Smart cities such as Dubai should also have integrated IT-enabled work order systems in their building to facilitate the workflow and permit the analysis based on such parameters as space, labor, personnel, costs, and materials.

Moreover, smart cities should also adopt smart tourism, which involves bringing together several smart city concepts aimed at promoting tourism through some innovative utilization of ICT. Smart tourism embraces the use of the Internet of Things approach, which connects real and physical objects to the Internet. For instance, tourists in Seoul can rent some unique smartphones that have been installed with 'i-Tour Seoul,' which is an application based on the official website for the country's tourism. The application gives all the necessary information to the tourists, including acting as a travel guides. It indicates the places of interest, real-time weather updates, accommodation, and dining options, among others (Mehmood et al., 2017).

Conclusion

In conclusion, smart cities can become smarter through the adoption of technology in all sectors including, tourism, transport, building and construction, healthcare services environmental conservation, etc. Integrating communication and technology (Internet of Things- IoT) in the city's physical infrastructure will improve mobility, security, and service delivery in the city. Dubai has become the first smart city in the Middle East, but more initiatives can be adopted to make the city even smarter.

References

Mehmood, Y., Ahmad, F., Yaqoob, I., Adnane, A., Imran, M., & Guizani, S. (2017). Internet-of-things-based smart cities: Recent advances and challenges. IEEE Communications Magazine, 55(9), 16-24. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/8030479

Talari, S., Shafie-Khah, M., Siano, P., Loia, V., Tommasetti, A., & Catalão, J. P. (2017). A review of smart cities based on the Internet of things concept. Energies, 10(4), 421. https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/10/4/421

Zanella, A., Bui, N., Castellani, A., Vangelista, L., & Zorzi, M. (2014). Internet of things for smart cities. IEEE Internet of Things Journal, 1(1), 22-32. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/6740844/