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Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of

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S
Smart Cities: Definitions,
Evolution of the Concept and
Examples of Initiatives
Filipe Moura and João de Abreu e Silva
CERIS, Instituto Superior Técnico,
Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
Synonyms
Digital city; Intelligent city
Definition
Smart cities were defined by the British Standards
Institute as “the effective integration of physical,
digital and human systems in the built environ-
ment to deliver a sustainable, prosperous and
inclusive future for its citizens” (BSI 2014). Com-
plementarily, a smart city can be defined as an
urban area (encompassing possibly different
areas and scales of the city – street, plaza, neigh-
borhood, or, ultimately, an entire city) that uses
electronic data collection sensors located in infra-
structures, buildings, vehicles, institutions, and
devices (IoT, Internet of Things) to supply real-
time information of the main cities’ operating
systems. The latter include energy, transportation,
water supply, sewage, waste, law enforcement,
and information and communication. All
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019
W. Leal Filho et al. (eds.), Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development
Goals, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71059-4_6-1
sensorized data is integrated into information
and communication technology (ICT) platforms
to allow city managers and decision-makers to
optimize the efficiency and resilience of city oper-
ations and services by connecting and command-
ing those systems remotely, but also to connect to
and communicate with stakeholders (citizens,
companies, institutions, and civic organizations).
In a smart city setting, city officials can also foster
participatory governance, increase collaboration
among different economic actors, encourage
innovative business models in both the private
and public sectors, and, ultimately, promote a
more urban sustainable development and more
competitive and attractive business and creative
environment.
The Evolution of the Smart City Concept
Many definitions have been suggested for the
concept of a smart city. Concepts also vary on
the terminology by replacing “smart” with alter-
native terms, such as “intelligent” or “digital.”
Instead of a city, some definitions also refer to
“community.” The label “smart city” can be per-
ceived as an indistinctive concept and is not
always used consistently (Albino et al. 2015).
Table 1 presents a list of definitions of the
smart city proposed in the literature. An early
definition was proposed by Hall et al. (2000),
almost two decades ago. Twenty-seven alternative
2 Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of Initiatives

Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of Initiatives, Table 1 List of definitions of the
smart city concept. (Adapted from Albino et al. 2015; Dameri 2017)
Date Author(s) Definition
2000 Hall et al. A city that monitors and integrates conditions of all of its critical infrastructures, including
roads, bridges, tunnels, rails, subways, airports, seaports, communications, water, power,
and even major buildings, can better optimize its resources, plan its preventive maintenance
activities, and monitor security aspects while maximizing services to its citizens
2007 Giffinger et al. A city well performing in a forward-looking way in economy, people, governance,
mobility, environment, and living, built on the smart combination of endowments and
activities of self-decisive, independent, and aware citizens. The smart city generally refers
to the search and identification of intelligent solutions which allow modern cities to enhance
the quality of the services provided to citizens
2009 Eger Smart community – a community which makes a conscious decision to aggressively deploy
technology as a catalyst to solving its social and business needs – will undoubtedly focus on
building its high-speed broadband infrastructures, but the real opportunity is in rebuilding
and renewing a sense of place and in the process a sense of civic pride. [ . . . ] Smart
communities are not, at their core, exercises in the deployment and use of technology, but in
the promotion of economic development, job growth, and increased quality of life. In other
words, technological propagation of smart communities is not an end in itself but only a
means to reinvent cities for a new economy and society with clear and compelling
community benefit
2010 IBM A smart city is defined by IBM as the use of information and communication technology to
sense, analyze, and integrate the key information of core systems in running cities
2010 Harrison et al. A city connecting the physical infrastructure, the IT infrastructure, the social infrastructure,
and the business infrastructure to leverage the collective intelligence of the city
2010 Chen Smart cities will take advantage of communications and sensor capabilities sewn into the
cities’ infrastructures to optimize electrical, transportation, and other logistical operations
supporting daily life, thereby improving the quality of life for everyone.
2010 Washburn et al. The use of Smart Computing technologies to make the critical infrastructure components
and services of a city – which include city administration, education, healthcare, public
safety, real estate, transportation, and utilities – more intelligent, interconnected, and
efficient
2011 Komninos (Smart) Cities as territories with a high capacity for learning and innovation, which is built
in the creativity of their population, their institutions of knowledge creation, and their
digital infrastructure for communication and knowledge management
2011 Su et al. Smart city is the product of digital city combined with the Internet of Things
2011 Caragliu et al. A city is smart when investments in human and social capital and traditional (transport) and
modern (ICT) communication infrastructure fuel sustainable economic growth and a high
quality of life, with a wise management of natural resources, through participatory
governance
2011 Nam and Pardo A smart city infuses information into its physical infrastructure to improve conveniences,
facilitate mobility, add efficiencies, conserve energy, improve the quality of air and water,
identify problems and fix them quickly, recover rapidly from disasters, collect data to make
better decisions, deploy resources effectively, and share data to enable collaboration across
entities and domains
2011 Thite Creative or smart city experiments [ . . . ] aimed at nurturing a creative economy through
investment in the quality of life which in turn attracts knowledge workers to live and work
in smart cities. The nexus of competitive advantage has [ . . . ] shifted to those regions that
can generate, retain, and attract the best talent
2011 Thuzar Smart cities of the future will need sustainable urban development policies where all
residents, including the poor, can live well and the attraction of the towns and cities is
preserved. [ . . . ] Smart cities are cities that have a high quality of life, those that pursue
sustainable economic development through investments in human and social capital and
traditional and modern communications infrastructure (transport and information
communication technology) and manage natural resources through participatory policies.
Smart cities should also be sustainable, converging economic, social, and environmental
goals
(continued)
Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of Initiatives 3

Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of Initiatives, Table 1 (continued)
Date Author(s) Definition
2012 Lazaroiu and A community of average technology size, interconnected and sustainable, comfortable,
Roscia attractive, and secure
2012 Guan A smart city, according to ICLEI, is a city that is prepared to provide conditions for a healthy
and happy community under the challenging conditions that global, environmental,
economic, and social trends may bring
2012 Barrionuevo et Being a smart city means using all available technology and resources in an intelligent and
al. coordinated manner to develop urban centers that are at once integrated, habitable, and
sustainable
2012 Kourtit and Smart cities are the result of knowledge-intensive and creative strategies aiming at
Nijkamp enhancing the socioeconomic, ecological, logistic, and competitive performance of cities.
Such smart cities are based on a promising mix of human capital (e.g., skilled labor force),
infrastructural capital (e.g., high-tech communication facilities), social capital (e.g., intense
and open network linkages), and entrepreneurial capital (e.g., creative and risk-taking
business activities)
2012 Kourtit et al. Smart cities have high productivity as they have a relatively high share of highly educated
people, knowledge-intensive jobs, output-oriented planning systems, creative activities,
and sustainability-oriented initiatives
2012 Lombardi et al. The application of information and communications technology (ICT) with their effects on
human capital/education, social and relational capital, and environmental issues is often
indicated by the notion of a smart city
2012 Cretu Two main streams of research ideas: (1) smart cities should do everything related to
governance and economy using new thinking paradigms, and (2) smart cities are all about
networks of sensors, smart devices, real-time data, and ICT integration in every aspect of
human life
2013 Bakıcı et al. Smart city as a high-tech intensive and advanced city that connects people, information, and
city elements using new technologies in order to create a sustainable, greener city,
competitive and innovative commerce, and increased life quality
2013 Dameri A smart city is a well-defined geographical area, in which high technologies such as ICT,
logistic, energy production, and so on cooperate to create benefits for citizens in terms of
well-being, inclusion, participation, environmental quality, and intelligent development; it
is governed by a well-defined pool of subjects, able to state the rules and policy for the city
government and development
2013 Zygiaris A smart city is understood as a certain intellectual ability that addresses several innovative
socio-technical and socioeconomic aspects of growth. These aspects lead to smart city
conceptions as “green” referring to urban infrastructure for environment protection and
reduction of CO2 emission, “interconnected” related to revolution of broadband economy,
and “intelligent” declaring the capacity to produce added value information from the
processing of city’s real-time data from sensors and activators, whereas the terms
“innovating” and “knowledge” cities interchangeably refer to the city’s ability to raise
innovation based on knowledgeable and creative human capital
2015 Marsal-Llacuna Smart cities initiatives try to improve urban performance by using data, information, and
et al. information technologies (IT) to provide more efficient services to citizens, to monitor and
optimize existing infrastructure, to increase collaboration among different economic actors,
and to encourage innovative business models in both the private and public sectors

definitions were recollected that progressively
complement this earliest definition. The
California Institute for Smart Communities
(2001) added the notion of “smart community”
highlighting the importance of community
involvement in the collective efforts to
fundamentally improve the urban life and work-
ing habits. Giffinger et al. (2007) included the
governance and citizen-centered dimensions of
what a smart city should be. Chen (2010) empha-
sized the technological importance of sensorizing
the city to collect data and information. Later,
4 Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of Initiatives
Komninos (2011) stressed out the creativity and
knowledge creation capabilities that smart cities
should aim to and take advantage of the connected
city, while Caragliu et al. (2011) recalled the par-
ticipatory governance enhanced capabilities of
smart territories.
Many authors highlight the objectives of the
smart city more than what it is. Many authors
(Caragliu et al. 2011, Nam and Pardo 2011, Thuzar
2011, Bakıcı et al. 2013, Dameri 2013) include in
their definitions the increase in energy efficiency
and environmental sustainability potentially gained
with smart cities. Interestingly, Lazaroiu and
Roscia (2012) add the security dimension that
smart cities can ameliorate. Thite (2011) refers to
the capability of smart cities to potentially attract
talent and entrepreneurship because they can pro-
vide more competitive and attractive business envi-
ronments as referred by Kourtit and Nijkamp
(2012), Kourtit et al. (2012), and Bakıcı et al.
(2013). After presenting the evolution of the con-
cept of smart cities, we describe in detail what can
be “smart” in a city and what makes a city “smart,”
in the forthcoming sections.
What Makes a City “Smart”?
As mentioned earlier, several authors have pre-
sented definitions for smart cities and attempted
to disentangle this concept from other similar
ones, like information city (Lee et al. 2013) or
digital, knowledge, and smart city (Dameri
2017). Since most smart city-related projects
have risen from the bottom-up experiences related
to specific problems, it becomes difficult to have
a generalizable definition (Dameri 2017). Despite
the absence of a standard complete definition,
there is a common thread among the different
characterizations of a smart city, which is the use
of technologies to solve quality of life-related
problems (Galati 2018) and the centrality of infor-
mation and communication technologies (ICT)
resulting from its evolution from the concept of
information city (Lee et al. 2013).
A smart city includes all the aspects of urban
life and therefore has been proposed, in some
cases, as a panacea to solve urban problems
(Dameri 2017). Embracing the smart city concept
is usually associated with urbanization, city
growth, and its related problems (e.g., traffic, pol-
lution, energy consumption) (Galati 2018). The
objectives are to produce better governance, ser-
vices, economic and educational opportunities, as
well as social equity, i.e., using technology to
improve the community (Lehr 2018). However,
there is also an issue related with the promotion of
the city as an appealing area (Galati 2018), since
cities consider that being viewed as smart cities is
important (Dameri 2017). This is a significant part
due to the fact that human capital and education
are viewed as drivers of urban growth (Lee et al.
2013), and a smart city is usually viewed as being
able to attract a more educated and skilled popu-
lation, akin to what Richard Florida (2004)
defined as the creative class.
The concept of a smart city encompasses six
main dimensions: smart economy, smart mobility,
smart environment, smart people, smart living,
and smart governance (Lee et al. 2013). These
are the dimensions that are aimed to become
smart in the city. Currently, it is still a vision as
there is no case study that, today, encompasses all
these dimensions of smartness in one single loca-
tion. As specified by Galati (2018), each of those
dimensions includes several considerations (note:
the following are representative but certainly not
exhaustive nor complete):
• Smart economy: efficiency in energy use; inno-
vation, economic impacts, and return on
investment; circular economy
• Smart mobility: intelligent transportation
and transport systems, intelligent parking
solutions, traffic management, mobility-as-a-
service
• Smart environment: water and waste manage-
ment, monitoring of environmental indicators,
sustainable processes and urbanization, hybrid
approaches to manufacturing
• Smart people: connected citizens, workers, and
visitors; e-health; e-learning
• Smart living: smart spaces, advanced mate-
rials, public security and urban resiliency
• Smart governance: digital automation of pro-
cesses, open data, citizen participation
Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of Initiatives
Complementarily, the level of smartness of a
city could be defined based on its core compo-
nents: land (or territory), infrastructure, people,
and government (Dameri 2017). These are the
components that are instrumental in making
a city “fully smart.” The system is made smart
by the connectivity and integration of all techno-
logical systems deployed and connected in
each of these core components (Jimenez 2018).
Complementarily, Dameri (2017) suggests that
the level of smartness implemented in each of
these components should be the result of three
characteristics:
1. Effectiveness, since a smart city has to create
value for its citizens
2. Environmental considerations, preventing at
least further environmental degradation
3. Innovation, using technology to reduce envi-
ronmental impacts and deliver better services
A smart city utilizes and explores ICT for the
benefit of its population, therefore transcending
just the mere application and implementation
of these technologies (Lehr 2018). Although tech-
nology is at the core of the smart city concept, and
it is a necessary condition, it is not although suf-
ficient, because the application of technology is
not enough to create public value for citizens
(Dameri 2017). For example, ICT is not a neces-
sary technology to implement smart mobility pro-
jects since they could be related to vehicle and fuel
technologies or just two different organizational/
institutional models. However, ICT could become
determinant when the scale and complexity
increase (Dameri 2017). Academic and empirical
views of a smart city differ in fundamental
aspects, in that the empirical and more business
visions of smart cities are firmly based on the role
of technology, making it closer to the concept of
the digital city (Dameri 2017).
Hand in hand with technology and integration
of multiple systems through ICT (Galati 2018),
data is a relevant and fundamental asset to make a
smart city work. Data generates benefits that
extend beyond financial aspects (revenues) but
also has associated costs (Lehr 2018). Data flows
are dependent on smart grids that allow
5
bidirectional relationships between different enti-
ties formerly exclusively related either with con-
sumption or production and are a core part of the
smart cities infrastructure (Koutitas 2018). A
smart grid includes energy production, distribu-
tion, and ICT devices to transfer data and com-
mand flow. The Internet of Things, another critical
component of a smart city, is a set of electronic
and photonic devices which can communicate
with each other without human intervention
(Zou et al. 2018). For example, IoT can collect
transportation-related data (flows, congestion,
road conditions, among others) and use cloud
computing services to optimize transportation ser-
vices (Jimenez 2018). Smart cities will depend
increasingly on data-intensive technologies and
processes, making the cloud a critical requirement
(Booth 2018). Integrity and confidentiality of
cloud-based data are critical aspects (Jimenez
2018).
Finally, making a city “smart” involves
the need of the public sector to partner with the
private sector and nonprofit and academic entities.
These are the partnerships that can foster
innovation and make risk management more
agile (Lehr 2018).
Experiences of Smart Cities
There have been several indexes and ranking of
smart cities and smart cities initiatives
(Sanseverino et al. 2017). Different entities, like
think tanks, consultancies, and news outlets, have
established rankings of smart cities (e.g., http://
www.ioti.com/smart-cities/world-s-5-smartest-cit
ies; https://www.richardvanhooijdonk.com/en/6-
smartest-smart-cities-world/; https://apiumhub.
com/tech-blog-barcelona/smart-city-projects-lead
ers-barcelona/). These cities tend to be ranked
based on several factors related with the
adoption and implementation of several ICT- and
IoT-related technologies. These include Wi-Fi
access, smartphone penetration, energy, and trans-
portation-related smart applications (e.g., traffic
management, public lighting, electric grid man-
agement). Cities like Barcelona, Singapore, Hel-
sinki, Copenhagen, London, San Francisco, Oslo,
6 Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of Initiatives

Seoul, Seattle, and Milton Keynes have been pre- design, either through the implementation of
sent in these rankings. Sanseverino et al. (2017) specific new designs and building technologies
elaborate a detailed list of examples of smart cities or through retrofitting of existing buildings.
and projects implemented in them. Most of the There are also some differences between the
cities and projects are related to the reduction of strategies adopted in consolidated cities and new
CO2 emissions and energy consumption and an cities, as the case of Songdo or Masdar. These
increase of production efficiency. None of these new cities have specific aims of presenting them-
cities have been able to make many dimensions selves as places where energy-related innovations
“smart” concomitantly. will be introduced during the city conception/
The next sections review some of the develop- planning phases and, in the case of Masdar, to be
ments of the project of smart cities for different a world-class center of energy and sustainability-
sectors: energy, mobility, buildings and neighbor- related research.
hoods, and governance.
Mobility
Energy
Mobility-related projects are quite common
Efficiency and sustainability in energy consump-
in smart city developments. The range of these
tion and production are a relevant component in
projects is also quite broad, including new infra-
several smart cities initiatives. They include the
structure, rolling stock, different propulsion sys-
construction of buildings with near-zero energy
tems, sharing systems, and the deployment of
consumption, the production of energy in situ,
ICT, confirming Dameri’s (2017) statement that
using wind or solar power (e.g., Masdar city in
smartness in cities goes beyond the application of
Abu Dhabi, Stockholm), smart grids, waste com-
ICT-related technologies. As in the energy-related
bustion to produce energy, and biogas production
smart city initiatives, there is a strong emphasis on
from sewage (e.g., Amsterdam, Stockholm,
increasing energy efficiency and reducing CO2
Songdo city in South Korea). Waste combustion
emissions.
is used to produce electric energy (through cogen-
The range of mobility/transportation projects
eration), and the excess heat resulting from that
includes:
combustion is used to provide heat and hot water
to several homes and enterprises. Smart grid ini-
• The design and implementation of an entirely
tiatives aim to improve energy efficiency through
new mobility system based on micro metropol-
monitoring, optimizing consumption and allo-
itan and semi-individual use transit system
wing the incorporation of small renewable energy
(Masdar city).
producers. Solar power is also used for thermal
• Programs to eliminate, within a specific time
collectors as the case of specific neighborhoods
horizon, internal combustion vehicles and
in Freiburg (e.g., Vauban district) and the intro-
replace them with electric vehicles, as in the
duction of solar photovoltaic panels in buildings
case of Amsterdam. To achieve these objec-
in Bologna. Retrofitting of district heating net-
tives, a network of charging stations and the
works is another type of smart city projects
smart electric grid is being developed. On a
being developed in Torino.
policy level, electric vehicles have been
These projects are usually developed under
granted parking-related privileges.
specific overachieving goals that aim to make
• Construction of cycling infrastructure (e.g.,
these cities either carbon neutral, eliminating fos-
Freiburg, Torino) and the implementation
sil fuel use or at least reducing strongly CO2
of shared transport services: shared bikes
emissions. Therefore there is a strong emphasis
(e.g., Bologna,) and car sharing (e.g., Freiburg,
on the use of renewable energies. These strategies
Bologna).
although related with energy consumption and
• Progressive shifting of urban freight deliveries
production tend to have ramifications in other
to electric vehicles (e.g., Amsterdam, Milano)
projects related with buildings and neighborhood
Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of Initiatives 7

and the use of the tram network to transport collection (e.g., Stockholm, Lisbon), adaptive
urban freight in Amsterdam. public lighting systems (e.g., Bologna), and
• Instrumenting loading/unloading bays with urban irrigation systems that make the best use
occupation sensors (e.g., Milano). of rainwater and avoid runoffs of rainwater (e.g.,
• Reducing ship-related CO2 emissions of Sondgo). Many of these developments are not
moored ships through ship-to-grid in the port citywide. Typically, they are still at the pilot
of Amsterdam. scale of some neighborhoods.
• Use of electricity and biofuel to power public
transport vehicles and public vehicle fleets (e.
Governance
g., Stockholm).
Governance and the application of ICT in e-gov-
• Extensive use of ICT-related applications
ernment projects are an essential part of smart city
either with the implementation of real-time
projects and contribute to increasing the quality of
traffic information, parking availability, public
life of populations, but also to improve the effi-
transport services information, and the devel-
ciency and effectiveness of energy, buildings, and
opment of applications that allow the acquisi-
mobility-related projects.
tion of transit tickets (e.g., Bologna, Torino,
A relevant part related to smart governance
Milano, Songdo).
relates to the different stakeholders involved.
• Using the city as a testbed for research projects
Several smart city initiatives stress the importance
related with smart mobility, as in the case of
of active collaborations between stakeholders
Singapore, and creating ICT-based services
coming from the private sector, policymaking,
that allow for better integration between differ-
universities, and research centers as well as
ent transport services (e.g., Torino, Milano).
citizens (e.g., Amsterdam, Torino, Milano,
• Dynamic parking fees to increase efficiency in
Stockholm). Open data and transparency regard-
parking management (e.g., Milano).
ing projects, its objectives, and achievements are a
crucial element of the strategy followed by
Buildings and Neighborhoods
Amsterdam, which also includes mixed funding
Another important group of smart city projects
(private and public) and a long-term commitment
is related to buildings and urban neighbor-
from the founding stakeholders. Transparency is
hoods. These types of projects have strong
achieved through a web portal providing informa-
implications regarding energy efficiency and
tion about projects or the creation of a smart city
CO2 emissions, but also with waste reduction
dashboard, as in the case of Torino.
and water reuse. In new cities, planned from the
Other initiatives include the provision
beginning as smart cities, as the case of Masdar or
of broadband and several initiatives allowing
Songdo, building-related measures are related
citizens to access several public services (e.g.,
with building designs aiming at near-zero energy
health, education, culture), either by scheduling
consumption by combining passive energy mea-
appointments and buying tickets or paying for
sures (e.g., insulation) with active energy-related
services and the digitalization of administrative
measures (e.g., installing solar panels with sec-
procedures. There are other smart city-related pro-
ond-life batteries).
jects that involve the development of apps
In consolidated cities, although new building
assisting such services, like ensuring security
designs are being implemented, including smart
and preventing safety risks during crowd events,
buildings (e.g., Amsterdam), there is a stronger
through smartphones
emphasis in retrofitting and upgrading existing
Another component is related to civic engage-
buildings particularly in cities with a strong his-
ment and collaboration among the inhabitants, a
torical heritage (e.g., Bologna). Other measures,
relevant part in the planning and development of
with broader impact at the level of neighborhoods,
some new districts, using adaptive urban planning
include provision of centralized heating (e.g.,
concepts (e.g., Freiburg).
Amsterdam, Bologna, Torino), centralized waste
8 Smart Cities: Definitions, Evolution of the Concept and Examples of Initiatives
Final Remarks
This chapter began with a short definition of smart
cities. The following two chapters aimed at
complementing this definition by explaining
what should be smart in a city (dimensions of
the urban life) and what makes a city smart (tech-
nological components of the urban system).
Examples of smart city developments were briefly
mentioned, also highlighting that these are still at
the pilot scales and, usually, encompass few
dimensions (and many times only one) of the
city smartness.
In the context of the UN Sustainable Develop-
ment Goals, this chapter is instrumental, since it
explains in depth the term “smart city” within the
context of sustainable urban development. The
term relates particularly with several SD goals:
• Goal 7: “Ensure access to affordable, reliable,
sustainable and modern energy,” as one key
dimension of smart cities aims at clean and
efficient energy use.
• Goal 8: “Promote inclusive and sustainable
economic growth, employment and decent
work for all,” as smart cities also promote the
quality of life for all citizens.
• Goal 9: “Build resilient infrastructure, promote
inclusive and sustainable industrialization and
foster innovation,” as smart cities rely on smart
infrastructure to achieve higher levels of
efficiency.
• Goal 11: “Make cities inclusive, safe, resilient
and sustainable” as smart cities aim to be sus-
tainable urban developments.
• Goal 12: “Ensure sustainable consumption and
production patterns,” as the environment is one
chief target of smart cities, for example,
through the monitoring of water, waste, and
energy flows.
• Goal 13: “Take urgent action to combat climate
change and its impacts,” as smart cities are
crucial in this combat as, for example, they
aim to shift toward the efficient use of energy
and reduce the use of carbon-intensive technol-
ogies (e.g., buildings, mobility).
This chapter provides an in-depth understand-
ing of the term while giving access to a complete
list of up-to-date references that gathers together
the main contributors to the topic, both from aca-
demia (where most cited papers were preferred)
and the industry (resorting mainly to reference
international institutions).
As a final note, making a city “smart” is
a complex process that is starting to be
implemented in many locations, although at a
small scale and for a few dimensions at a time.
No experience exists yet that brings many
dimensions to operate concomitantly. The number
and diversity of stakeholders, companies, organi-
zations, and institutions involved, together
with the requirements of infrastructure deploy-
ment in all the dimensions of the city smartness,
and the need for integration of all these systems
and agents, while making these systems accessi-
ble for all (inclusive), are probably the main
challenges that the vision of smart cities will
face in the forthcoming years.
Cross-References
▶ Resilient Cities
▶ Transit-Oriented Development
▶ Urban Development
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