Cox Communications revealed this week a new pilot program with the city of Las Vegas to deploy one of the first Managed Private Networks launched by a U.S. city to facilitate Smart City use cases. Together, Cox and the city will use Citizens’ Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) to power Smart City solutions that are designed to deliver insights into visitor attendance and after-hours activities at a local park (Baker Park) through parking lot management, safety detection and trend analytics. The findings from this pilot, Cox said, will help the city expand on how networks of the future can be used to scale and support solutions and services.
The arrangement combines Cox’s existing fiber network with the city’s infrastructure. The CBRS network will initially support video cameras and associated sensors fixed to existing light poles throughout the park. A combination of cameras and radar sensors will be connected to CBRS-enabled wireless bridges that are fed from a central three-sector radio site.
Using its Smart Communities platform, Cox said the city will have access to all data generated in the pilot. This includes historical data on parking lot usage, occupancy, turnover. It includes real-time event notifications from safety cameras, driving enhanced visibility and public safety. By leveraging this data, the city can strategically send patrols to the park only when needed, improving operations and enabling officers to focus their time elsewhere.
By using a private network solution, according to Cox, the security and reliability of the data transmission is greatly enhanced. Additionally, the company said all confidential, personal, and sensitive data will be encrypted to protect the privacy of park visitors.
“Public safety is the top priority for our residents and the city, and thanks to Cox we are leveraging the technological assets in the community to pilot a new program that can improve the experience at our parks,” Ward 3 Councilwoman Olivia Diaz said. “Data from this system may help us to identify dangerous traffic patterns or other safety issues in and around the park that our team can address.”
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