"Intelligent cities" is picking up steam as the new buzzword in planning and a potentially game-changing way of using data to drive decisions. But we need to be sure we don't lose the human intelligence in planning.
Next American City's Julia Ramey Serazio points out that "Intelligent Cities" is the newest trend in new urbanism, and it has a lot of merit:
"'Intelligent cities,' the new darling lingo of planners, reflects the times. It captures the essence of 21st-century technology that can help track when and how many people cross a street, water and energy consumption and peak hours at every transit stop. It also will soon allow bidding on a parking space via cellphone (the space goes to the highest bidder)."
But there's a risk that planners will become too reliant on this technology. Serazio calls for moderation and a diversity of approaches, pointing out the dangers of moving too fast and too completely in the direction of Intelligent Cities - from losing the feedback of citizens without cellphones to increasing injustice and inefficiency in community decisions.
Read the full story: Let's Be Smart About Intelligent Cities
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