A methodological framework for benchmarking smart transport cities: Fid-Bau Portal

A methodological framework for benchmarking smart transport cities

Debnath, Ashim Kumar / Chin, Hoong Chor / Haque, Md. Mazharul / Yuen, Belinda

Highlights • Indicators of smart transport should reflect smart capabilities in transport sub-systems. • A comprehensive framework for benchmarking smart transport cities is proposed. • The framework is illustrated by benchmarking 26 large cities across the world. • London, Seattle and Sydney ranked high in the illustrative example. • The framework allows comparative studies among cities in different transport systems.

Abstract Besides responding to challenges of rapid urbanization and growing traffic congestion, the development of smart transport systems has attracted much attention in recent times. Many promising initiatives have emerged over the years. Despite these initiatives, there is still a lack of understanding about an appropriate definition of smart transport system. As such, it is challenging to identify the appropriate indicators of ‘smartness’. This paper proposes a comprehensive and practical framework to benchmark cities according to the smartness in their transportation systems. The proposed methodology was illustrated using a set of data collected from 26 cities across the world through web search and contacting relevant transport authorities and agencies. Results showed that London, Seattle and Sydney were among the world’s top smart transport cities. In particular, Seattle and Paris ranked high in smart private transport services while London and Singapore scored high on public transport services. London also appeared to be the smartest in terms of emergency transport services. The key value of the proposed innovative framework lies in a comparative analysis among cities, facilitating city-to-city learning.