: Smart City Krakow
One of the most important and famous Polish cities, the former capital of the country. In terms of the number of inhabitants (765,000), the area (327 km2) and the population density of 2332 inhabitants per km2, it is second only after Warsaw. The city is a popular tourist destination - over 10 million visitors a year. Krakow is known as a traditional, cultural and academic centre. It is also currently a booming economic and business centre.
: City vision and strategic goals
At present, Krakow is facing many civilizational challenges, while at the same time having enormous development potential - we are a leading economic and scientific centre - which further motivates us to seek innovative solutions, and fi nally to create such a city that will help fulfi l the dreams and needs of both its present and future residents.
The city development aims to continuously improve the quality of life of the residents, and therefore, their expectations and needs are the most important source of inspiration in the selection and implementation of urban projects. In Krakow, smart city management plays an important role in the development of the city, however the“smart city” approach cannot be considered as a fashion or ideology helping to solve any problems. A smart city of today should exist, first of all, for the benefi t of the residents - meeting their needs and even anticipating their needs, therefore, implementing
the “smart city” idea is a continuous process in which the city should respond fl exibly to new challenges, relying not only on the new technologies and technically-advanced services but, above all, also on the skilful use of resources - so as to optimize solutions while balancing the needs of the residents and the potential of the city.
The “smart” tools associated with the latest technological advances have to cope with the need for a fast and effi cient fl ow of information so that they canbe used to smartly link all of the areas of the city governance.
: Key smart projects
Intelligent Transport Systems
the organization of traffi c and effi cient public transport are amongthe key determinants of the quality of life in the city, therefore Krakow, in order to meet the requirements, has successfully implemented and used Intelligent Transport Systems
(ITS). The fi rst is the Tram Traffi c Control System (TTSS) responsible for monitoring public transport operations, organising detours in the event of diffi culties and breakdowns, informing passengers at tram stopabout arrival times (more than 300 passenger information boards have been installed). The boards keep travellers informed about the time remaining until the arrival of the next tram or bus, any possible traffic flow diffi culties, or other important passenger issues. The TTSS also assists tram drivers in scheduling, enables surveillance and a broad analysis of historical data, and identifying locations that require improvements in schedules, traffi c patterns,
or traffi c lights.
The other system is the Urban Traffi c Control System (UTCS) which primarily regulates car and pedestrian traffi c. It measures and analyses the number of vehicles and their speed. Depending on the situation, the system switches to green, detects pedestrians and cyclists, as well as the trams that should be given priority. UTCS operates along one of the main arterial routes of the city, where since the introduction
of dynamic signalling, circulation has increased by 25%. Together with such auxiliary systems as VMS traffic control panels (for drivers) and cameras (more than 300 units), it is possible to carry out continuous surveillance of traffic in the city, report breakdowns and failures in real time and archive the collected data for further analyses. All of the activities are coordinated by a modern Traffi c Control Centre, operating 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Intelligent lighting
The modernisation of the urban lighting system is Krakow’s example of the optimisation of energy consumption, one of the important features of a „smart city“. In 2016, a project was completed which included the replacement of street lighting with
new energy-saving LED lighting (over 7000 luminaires) with the extension of the telemetry layer. The former street lighting system in Krakow generated high environmental and maintenance costs, and the modernisation resulted in the reduction
of energy consumption of street lighting by 63.13%, the equivalent of a reduction in CO2 emissions by 1809.97 mg/year. The financial benefi ts primarily include maintenance savings (about EUR 16,000 per year) and, above all, energy savings (approx. EUR 300,000 per year). The modernisation also enabled the use and development of an Intelligent Lighting Control System. Thanks to a partnership with the AGH University of Science and Technology, the project was supplemented by an extension of the telemetry layer and the creation of innovative software in the fi eld of control. The project is one of the many examples of the cooperation between local government and universities in the fi eld of intelligent solutions, which is a valuable experience for both parties.
Intelligent water and sewage network management system (ISZS)
The purpose of the current smart network management system is to produce resource savings, monitor leaks and water losses from water supply networks, and prevent infi ltration of water into the sewage systems and tracing any potential leaks into the environment, as well as adapting to climate change. The use of the intelligent hydraulic model and hydrodynamic network together with the equipment for current parameter monitoring will help to optimise the performance of the equipment.
The goal is also to provide alternative water supply paths, as well as to simulate the operation of the network during breakdowns or environmental contamination. The hydraulic model upgrades and integration with GIS systems make it possible to keep track of the network operations incontinuous mode, automatically generate alarms in non-standard network operations or simulate the network operations in advance (up
to 48 hours) with the possibility of analysing past time.
In addition, the sewerage network model will be linked to the precipitation forecast by simulating the network operation and the occurrence of potential fl oods in advance, as based on forecast data. Data from the on-line model can be used in the analyses carried out in the detailed model of the water supply and sewage network.
Smart parking
a pilot system is in operation on several selected streets in the city centre to assist the management of the Paid Parking Zone. It is a tool that will collect information about the availability of parking spaces in the zone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and then
display it on street signs positioned as drivers enter the streets covered by the system. The real-time tool will help manage the zone more eff ectively and will also help improve the air quality in the city by eliminating unnecessary car traffic.
The solution provided is the basis for the Krakow city open platformgiving information about the availability of parking spaces, not only in the paid parking zone but also in other locations, such as surface, underground, P + R or private car parks. In Krakow, a free-of-charge mobile InfoParking application is already available, providing comprehensive information about paid parking zones, and others such as a map of the zones, parking meter locations, stopover prices, available payment methods, operating hours of the paid parking zone and a GPS locator of parked cars; ultimately, the application will present all information about parking spaces in Krakow.
