Kansas City streetcar kickoff syncs with Smart City launch
May 5, 2016 | Bobby Burch
It’s poised to be a momentous week for Kansas City infrastructure.
In addition to the Friday launch of the much-anticipated Kansas City streetcar line, the City of Fountains has officially kicked off operations of its smart city framework.
The $15.7 million public-private project aims to transform Kansas City’s downtown into a living lab of Wi-Fi connectivity on and around the 2.2-mile streetcar line. Via a large Wi-Fi and sensor network, the project will provide a variety of information to citizens while also collecting data on their behavior in downtown.
The project is a collaboration between Kansas City, Sprint, Cisco and Think Big Partners. Kansas City signed an agreement with Sprint and Cisco in June to create the largest smart city in North America with the intention to improve municipal services.
The Sprint Wi-Fi network stretches across more than 50 square blocks in downtown and will enable connectivity between the project’s sensors and devices. The project includes 125 “smart” streetlights along the streetcar line and 25 touchscreen kiosks that offer information on city services, nearby restaurants and real-time information collected from smart city sensors.
“I’m excited to see our Smart City open to the world,” Kansas City CIO Bob Bennett said in a release. “This effort helps us connect to 21st-century citizens in 21st-century ways, understand our city better through use of big data and enable city leaders to prevent problems instead of just solving them.”
Sprint’s network is worth around $7 million while Cisco will be providing smart city infrastructure worth upwards of $5 million. The Kansas City Council approved in April roughly $3.7 million to spend on the project, bringing the total cost of the Smart City effort to more than $15.7 million.
“Sprint is excited to be part of this important initiative to enable greater connectivity in our hometown, Kansas City,” Tim Donahue, president of Sprint’s Kansas and Missouri operations, said in a release. “We view this as a mutually beneficial partnership that will make Kansas City an even better place to live, work and visit.”
Kansas City Mayor Sly James previously said that the project is an open invitation to innovators from around the world to test various technologies on Kansas City’s smart city framework. Think Big’s Living Lab initiative will serve as the testing hub for entrepreneurs’ smart city ideas.
The Kansas City streetcar is hosting a public party Friday to kick off its operations. The event starts at 10 a.m. at Union Station.
To learn more about the Living Lab, watch the video below.
Featured Business
2016 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
As book banning spreads across US, one KC media company calls out specific threat to diverse creators
The Kansas City publishing powerhouse behind many of the nation’s most-beloved newspaper comics — from Calvin & Hobbes and The Far Side to Garfield and Peanuts — this week raised its voice amid a growing push to condemn book bans flaring up across the country. “Books are safe harbors, where the freedom of expression and…
Torch.AI secures second acquisition in two months with more in its pipeline, revealing strategy to ‘turbocharge’ military intel
Leawood-based artificial intelligence firm Torch.AI recently expanded its team and capabilities through the acquisition of B23 — a Virginia-based data extraction software company, noted Adam Lurie, chief strategy officer of Torch.AI “Our belief is that the combination of Torch.AI’s software platform Nexus, alongside the subject matter expertise and customer capabilities of B23, will allow us…
New initiative has a message for KC: When Black men say they need a ’90s self-love reboot — listen
Love yourself enough to know you matter It’s virtually impossible to love others when there’s not already a sense of self love, said Kansas City small business owner Christina Williams, announcing the launch of an initiative to guide its community of Black men to understanding and believing in their own self-worth. “I know a lot…
Splitting time between student, entrepreneur lives earns Splitsy co-founder top UMKC honor
Recognition as UMKC’s Student Entrepreneur of the Year is a reminder that innovators often begin early, said Brad Starnes, one of Kansas City’s most-talked-about emerging young startup founders. “When I was about 8 years old, I submitted a drawing to an engineering firm,” said the co-founder of Splitsy, a bill splitting app that launched its…