DALLAS INNOVATION ALLIANCE UNVEILS VISION FOR WEST END LIVING LAB
Projects are focused on smart infrastructure, mobility and connected living
DALLAS, TX, June 29, 2016 — Today, the Dallas Innovation Alliance (DIA), a 501c(3) Public-Private Partnership dedicated to the development and execution of a multi-phased smart city strategy for Dallas, publicly unveiled its vision for its living lab in the West End, as part of the burgeoning Dallas Innovation District. The vision was revealed via concept renderings from BOKA Powell, and a virtual reality experience from Dallas-based 900lbs of Creative. These visual and immersive tools provide a view into what the West End looks like today, and what it will look like with smart elements incorporated into the living lab in the coming months.
The DIA will address key challenges faced by Dallas, and cities around the world, around aging infrastructure, strained natural and fiscal resources, and increased density in the urban core, while providing the technology and connectivity needed to power the future for all Dallasites. The DIA operates from the definition that a smart city is one where technological and social infrastructures accelerate sustainable economic development, conserves resources and improves the quality of life for its citizens.
The West End living lab will include smart city elements including:
1. Intelligent LED Lighting: Street lights in the living lab along Market Street will be converted to LED, and sensors measuring environmental levels, including air quality, and crowd/noise detection will be installed.
2. Interactive Digital Kiosks: a series of kiosks will be deployed in the West End, which will provide a key focal point for citizen engagement, alongside delivery of public services, provision of public Wi-Fi, USB charging stations, emergency services, and wayfinding /transit options. Additional open source platform possible to provide a key application allowing for direct engagement with the city, events and services. Exact components of the hardware, and of the internal software can be customized to fit Dallas’ needs.
3. Network Connectivity: Fiber and cellular networks will provide full coverage, powering the living lab.
4. Public Wi-Fi will be available in the West End living lab.
5. Smart Parking: Infrastructure will be installed allowing for monitoring and visibility into available parking options, with the potential to locate and reserve parking ahead of time. Benefits include an improved citizen experience, increased parking utilization rates and decreased traffic congestion/CO2 emissions. A large proportion of urban congestion is directly related to cars looking for parking.
6. End-to-End Mobility App: Working with key partners, the Dallas Innovation Alliance will facilitate an end-to-end mobility application, allowing citizens a single point solution, incorporating all modes of transit, including: mass transit, car, rideshare, bike sharing, walking and smart parking solutions. Benefits include ability to weigh mixed modes of transit, choose your journey based on user priority including length of trip, cost of trip or taking the greenest possible option.
7. Waste Management: Solar-powered waste management system increases capacity and productivity, with sensors providing data so that trashcans are only emptied when they are full, decreasing CO2 emissions and overall cost.
8. Open Source Platform: A open source software platform will aggregate data and provide opportunities for citizens, entrepreneurs and organizations to build smart city applications on top of the platform.
“The Dallas Innovation Alliance is thrilled to share its vision and projects for the living lab in the West End District in downtown Dallas,” commented Jennifer Sanders, Executive Director of the Dallas Innovation Alliance. “Through a best minds approach and collaboration with our partners, we believe these elements, and others to come, provide a strong proof of concept in addressing the challenges that Dallas, and cities around the world, are facing. We are grateful to the City of Dallas, our partners, and to BOKA Powell and 900lbs of Creative for giving their time and talents to bring this vision to life.”
In the coming months, the DIA will begin implementation of initial projects in the West End Historic District in Dallas’ central business district, focused on smart infrastructure, smart mobility and connected living. The West End living lab will help anchor the Dallas Innovation District, providing a critical mass of the resources, infrastructure and creative talent that accelerates entrepreneurship, economic development and research & development. In December 2015, Dallas was selected as one of 10 cities in the inaugural Envision America program, which was announced at the White House in September 2015.
Earlier this month, the Dallas Innovation Alliance received a $205,000 grant from the United Way of Metropolitan Dallas (UWMD) supporting the organization, the first social innovation grant made in the United Way of Metropolitan Dallas’ history. These funds will be utilized to support the DIA’s 2016 operations, project management, community engagement, outreach initiatives and research.
Through the support and collaboration of its members, the DIA is committed to advancing transformative change in the city of Dallas while increasing the domestic and global profile of the great innovators and ideas that reside in Dallas. The Dallas Innovation Alliance’s key partners have shown forward-thinking leadership and dedication to the mission of the DIA, led by Foundational Partner AT&T, Pivotal Partner Cisco, Lead Partner Current, Powered by GE, Partners AECOM and Universal Mind, and Lead Community Partner United Way of Metropolitan Dallas.
About the Dallas Innovation Alliance
The Dallas Innovation Alliance (DIA) is a public-private partnership dedicated to the design and execution of a smart cities plan for the City of Dallas, leveraging social and technological infrastructures to accelerate sustainable economic growth, resource efficiency, and importantly, improve the quality of life for its citizens. DIA’s overarching goal is to elevate Dallas as a city that is not only prepared for, but a driving force in shaping, the future of cities, and providing opportunities for prosperity for its citizens. Its mission is to develop a scalable smart cities model for the City of Dallas that leverages the region’s distinctive strengths and leaves a legacy of innovation, sustainability and collaboration for future generations. DIA support is led by Foundational Partner AT&T, Pivotal Partner Cisco, Lead Partner Current, Powered by GE, Partners AECOM and Universal Mind, and Lead Community Partner United Way of Metropolitan Dallas. Partners of the Dallas Innovation Alliance include: City of Dallas, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART), Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau, Dallas Entrepreneur Center (DEC), Dallas Regional Chamber, Dallas 2030 District, Downtown Dallas Inc., The Real Estate Council (TREC), Texas Research Alliance, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, CIVIQ Streetscapes, Deloitte, Ericsson, IBM, Microsoft, Schneider Electric, Xerox, and World Wide Technology. For more information, please visit www.DallasInnovationAlliance.com.
