Nice goes telematics

Nice, the Mediterranean seaside resort and France's fifth largest city, is embarking on a year-long smart city proof-of-concept. It's partnering with Cisco and several companies involved with sustainable urban development through an alliance called Think Global. The project, "Connected Boulevard," is testing multiple applications such as smart parking, waste disposal, lighting efficiency and environmental monitoring. All of them build on information generated by approximately 200 wirelessly connected devices and sensors deployed along the 800-yard-long Boulevard Victor Hugo. "The goal is to define new applications, usages and business models," said Olivier Seznec, chief technology officer for Cisco France. In particular, the municipal government seeks to document specific ways in which these applications -- and others not yet defined -- may generate cost savings or new revenue for this city of about 550,000 inhabitants. That information is necessary to help justify a deeper investment. Read on in Greenbiz.