'Smart Screens' to Provide City Data in New York

Can 250 high-def, touch-screen kiosks make New York City more user-friendly, personalized and safe?

2 minute read

December 26, 2012, 9:00 AM PST

By Jessica Hsu


"A central goal is to create a digital channel that will relay important messaging, rapidly and accurately, to the public," said Tom Touchet, CEO of City 24/7. The "smart screens" will not only broadcast local maps, real-time warnings, event notices, and public transit timetables, but also provide responsive communications with city emergency services. The kiosks are being installed in areas of decommissioned pay phone booths to tap into existing power lines, and they will have back-up batteries to last at least 24 hours if electric service fails. The first of these will go live around New York's Union Square by spring. Other sites will include major entryways like bus shelters and train stations.

"And they're the soul of versatility," adds Neal Peirce, "also broadcasting a WiFi signal that can be picked up by nearby smart phones, tables or laptop computers." Cities can use the kiosks' processing power and fiber network connections to boost their security systems and run video surveillance. This could be helpful in monitoring suspicious activity and allowing city emergency workers to see a 911 caller in the distressed setting. New York, "a leader in opening city data and applying new technology under Mayor Michael Bloomberg," is the first client, but City 24/7 is planning to install these kiosks in cities around the world. Peirce asks, "OK, one may say, all this new technology sounds intriguing, but is it just one more product being pushed onto cities by profit-focused partners?"

Well, the kiosks will carry ads in roughly 25 percent of the space, which means that cities, not only City 24/7 and Cisco, will also receive a share of revenue. Peirce also reasons that New York sees the smart screens as "an entrepreneurial opening to serve citizens as well as keeping the town competitive" and that Cisco "aims, beyond profits, to seek 'shared economies' that foster public-private partnerships that help cities around the world prosper and succeed." City 24/7's Touchet said, "We believe these advanced systems will help to inform, protect and revitalize cities and their neighborhoods." Profit motives may be part of the equation, concludes Peirce, "But I sense an almost contagious 'cities of the 21st century' enthusiasm pervading this experiment."

Friday, December 21, 2012 in The Citistates Group

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Green vintage Chicago streetcar from the 1940s parked at the Illinois Railroad Museum in 1988.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails

Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

July 13, 2025 - WTTV

Blue and silver Amtrak train with vibrant green and yellow foliage in background.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail

The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

July 14, 2025 - Smart Cities Dive

Worker in yellow safety vest and hard hat looks up at servers in data center.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power

Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

July 18 - Inside Climate News

Former MARTA CEO Collie Greenwood standing in front of MARTA HQ with blurred MARTA sign visible in background.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns

MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

July 18 - WABE

Rendering of proposed protected bikeway in Santa Clara, California.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant

A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.

July 17 - San José Spotlight