Digital solutions for liveable and modern cities – numerous municipalities in Hesse want to transform themselves into “smart cities”.
The focus is not only on digital services provided by public administrations, but also on a more advanced and efficient organization of infrastructure and public services. This includes various areas such as mobility, green space irrigation and hazard prevention. But what are the specific benefits for citizens?
Smart traffic control: real-time information via app for greater convenience
How full is the bus? Will it fit a baby carriage? Is it even on time? In future, bus passengers in the city and district of Fulda will be able to get answers to these and other questions conveniently via an app – in real time.
This will be implemented using sensors on the entrance doors of around 160 buses operating in Fulda and the district. At the same time, it is planned to use GPS to determine the position of the buses at any time and display it digitally in real time. The locations of the buses will be communicated via apps, notices at bus stops, local authority dashboards and in the RMV app. The “Di@-Mobil” project aims to make local public transport in the city and district more customer-oriented and enable better responsiveness to fluctuations in demand. To implement the project, Hessian Digital Minister Prof. Dr. Kristina Sinemus has granted the city of Fulda a grant of 2.25 million euros for local public transport.
In Marburg, the occupancy of disabled parking spaces is recorded in real time in order to enable users to navigate to specific parking spaces. Kassel, on the other hand, is planning an AI-supported analysis of individual movement data. The aim is to recognize movement patterns in road traffic and warn of potential accidents.
Darmstadt plans to introduce a traffic light phase assistant to help optimize traffic flow. The application indicates which traffic light will turn red in front of the vehicle and what speed should be driven at. This allows drivers to drive more proactively and at the same time reduce CO2 emissions by reducing acceleration.
In some Hessian cities, tree sensors are being used to optimize irrigation
In Marburg, the Urban Greenery and Cemeteries Department has introduced an innovative tree monitoring system. Parameters such as soil moisture, soil conductivity and soil temperature are recorded. This data enables more precise control of irrigation and nutrient application, which significantly improves the health of the trees. Kassel also collects data on root moisture, and Darmstadt also uses “tree sensors”. This allows water to be distributed specifically where it is actually needed.
The town of Bad Nauheim is also pursuing such an approach. Here, soil moisture sensors support the economical and climate-appropriate use of water.
Smart waste disposal
The spa town in the Wetterau district plans the emptying of waste garbage cans in a particularly clever way. The data for this comes from fill level sensors in the waste garbage cans. In Kassel, there is an app that gives tips on waste avoidance and provides information on fill levels. More than 100 fill level sensors have already been installed in Kassel’s underground waste bins, with more to follow.
Smart technology against heavy rain: Fulda upgrades
The district of Fulda relies on smart technologies in the fight against heavy rain. Since May, there has been a system in all 23 municipalities that sounds the alarm in the event of heavy rain. To this end, 200 sensors have been installed. They are located in sewers, on bridges, public buildings and on bodies of water. The sensors measure rainfall and water levels and examine how the water in the sewers drains away. The data is transferred to a cloud in real time and compared with current measurement data and weather forecasts. Artificial intelligence is also used to evaluate the data.
Fulda goes digital: building authorities launch into the future
Since 2023, the “Digital Building Authority” funding project has been in place with all building authorities in the 23 towns and municipalities in the district of Fulda. As a first step, the computers in the building offices were replaced, according to the district. In addition, programs were introduced with which building applications can be filed and processed digitally. The largest sub-project is the digitization of several hundred meters of paper property files. The work should be completed in the fall.