What Are We Willing To Trade For A “Smart City”?
Our most recent wave of the Focus GTA study revealed that previous optimism has faded in the face of rising concerns surrounding “smart cities”.
a significant share of residents (37%) says they wouldn’t trust any entity with their data
Insights
What’s not to like about a smart city? In the municipal context, “smart” implies efficient, convenient, responsive and seamlessly coordinated. Some even dare to hope a smarter city and its magical efficiencies would deliver long-term financial savings and lower taxes. Enthusiasm about these potential benefits is strong enough that, as recently as the spring of 2015, almost three-quarters of GTA residents preferred local government investment in smart city technology over traditional infrastructure.
Since that time, however, many residents’ calculus has changed. For one thing, traditional infrastructure seems to be a more urgent priority as our existing equipment heaves under a growing population – and as the battering effects of climate change loom. As for smart city technology, residents have cooled on the prospect as their concerns about data privacy have deepened.
The smart city debate has been particularly intense in the City of Toronto, where the tri-government agency Waterfront Toronto is in negotiations with Sidewalk Labs, a Google sister company, about the prospect of designing and implementing a “smart” neighbourhood on Toronto’s eastern waterfront. This futuristic neighbourhood would be equipped with a variety of sensors and cutting-edge digital equipment to ease movement, troubleshoot problems, and support planning and operations. Local politicians, interest groups and privacy experts have voiced concerns about the lack of clarity around how data collected through the neighbourhood’s smart technologies will be protected. Most recently, Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner has criticized the project’s proposed data management framework for lacking necessary assurances.
Local residents are paying attention to these debates, and likely to the broader landscape in which big technology firms are being criticized for playing fast and loose with users’ information. As of 2019, GTA residents who were willing to give up some of their data privacy and control in exchange for smart-city benefits are outnumbered almost two-to-one by those who prioritize the protection of their data.
The fate of the Sidewalk Labs project itself remains unknown – but if the GTA did eventually begin to adopt smart city technologies, who would residents trust to manage the collection and analysis of the data? Governments are the most trusted stewards: 50 percent of GTA residents say they’d trust various levels of government with the information. Still a significant share of residents (37%) says they wouldn’t trust any entity with their data – and least of all a private business like Sidewalk Labs.
Learn more about what GTA residents think about issues like smart city technologies, data privacy and other policies impacting our municipal experiences by subscribing to Environics Research Focus GTA.
Find out how subscribing to Focus GTA can help your organization
Explore more of our recent corporate and public affairs and insights
Focus GTA: 2018 Key Community Metrics
Our Fall 2018 wave of Focus GTA surveyed 1,010 Greater Toronto Area residents and found that although they rate their quality of life quite highly, residents are concerned about transportation, [...]
Platforms And Values: Who Are The Parties Campaigning for?
By examining the social values of Canadian voters, we find a striking degree of consistency between political party platforms and key support groups in the October 2019 federal election.
New Poll Reveals Overwhelming Support For Pharmacare
A recent Environics Research poll reveals that Canadians believe the federal government is responsible for ensuring universal access to medications.
New Survey Highlights Issues Of Importance To Indigenous Peoples Leading Up To The Federal Election
Our recent study of Indigenous Peoples for APTN focused on concerns leading up to the federal election.
The Authoritarian Reflex: Will It Manifest In Canada?
A wave of authoritarian populism has been evident in Europe, Britain and the United States over the past few decades. Many Canadians are wondering how these energies might manifest in their own [...]
The mood in Alberta? Disappointment in the federation
Tony Coulson explores the growing economic concerns of Alberta and the feelings of disappointment in the federal government.
Undecided Voters Will Determine Alberta’s Future
Tony Coulson uses our social values data to explore the contrast between UCP and NDP partisans, and whether undecided voter values give any clues about how they might tilt on election day
Few Torontonians Oppose Sidewalk Labs/Quayside & Smart Cities
Despite months of negative headlines about an apparent wave of public opposition against Toronto’s Sidewalk Labs-Waterfront Toronto partnership, our new survey for the Toronto Region Board of [...]
