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Here’s a new accolade – Asbury Park has been named a smart city. 

The distinction comes from The Bookmark, a tech blog from Verizon.

“Cities around the globe are implementing internet-connected devices and software to improve quality of life,” according to the written report. “These ‘smart cities’ are widely considered to be the future of our world.”

Smart cities are those that use technology to help solve problems, such as traffic, parking and waste management. According to the report, 66 percent of the nation’s cities are investing in smart city technology. This includes, energy monitoring, the use of drones, smart parking meters, fire detection sensors, smart lighting, apps that allow the community to alert officials to safety and utility issues, and sensors that help with public transit, traffic and waste management monitoring.

In Asbury Park’s case, its implementation of weather-adaptive and wifi connected LED street lights helped land it on the list to 53 Top Smart cities across the nation, The Bookmark Spokesman Sam Carson said. 

But there are other smart initiatives underway in the 1.4 square mile community.

City officials have or are in the process of updating their parking meters and public wifi, which exists along the waterfront and will be made available throughout the downtown and along Springwood Avenue to its intersection with Atkins avenue.

Although it recently opted out of purchasing a drone in order to fund things like more body worn cameras and other resources for its police and fire departments, the municipality will soon bring electric vehicle charging stations and a car sharing program to the city. Last year, the community was the first Jersey Shore town to implement a bicycle sharing program.

Through its infrastructure improvement program, in come cases in conjunction with County and State projects, new bike lanes and traffic lights are being added.

This past year they launched a sustainability initiative that will grow green initiatives and a team of volunteers headed by Alliance for a Healthier Asbury Park Chair Nina Summerlin are working to develop an Open Streets Action Plan.

According to The Bookmark report, smart city and its related technology will be worth $62 billion in revenue by 2026. By 2020, 9.7 million urban appliances will be connected to the internet, including lights, parking meters, pollution monitors, traffic lights and buildings. The report also estimates that two-thirds of the world’s population will be living in cities by 2050.

To view the Top Smart Cities: The Internet of Things in Everyday Life blog, click here.

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