Last time I talked about smart cities it was based on a trip back to London, which has a dated infrastructure and growing demands from new development. It’s a challenge shared by many cities that are looking for a way forward to improve the quality of life of its citizens, but are held back by technical limitations and equipment that’s falling apart.
So a couple months ago an article in Fast Company caught my attention about a makeover of the common payphone. Earlier this year Mayor Bloomberg launched a competition aimed at redesigning the 11,000 or so phone booths that still exist within NYC. A couple weeks ago the city posted the names of six finalists on its tumblr site.
I especially liked the work of the Control Group and Titan 360, who teamed up to create what’s best described as a street-side data portal. It captures the essence of the smart city and extends that all the way down to the neighborhood level, where people can connect with what’s going on within their immediate surroundings. Cool stuff.
