CityVerve: Smart City Demonstrator for Manchester
The CityVerve: Smart City Demonstrator was a £10m investment from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to demonstrate the Internet of Things in the Manchester City Region.
The CityVerve Project tested better services using the Internet of Things (IoT) technology. The Internet of Things project added sensors and data analysis to urban equipment like streetlamps, vehicles or home heating equipment. These ‘smart’ improvements were used to test more personal, efficient and flexible products and services. The collaborative research and development project drew on expertise from the Manchester School of Architecture and the Schools of Computing and Engineering. Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU).
The largest area of research within MMU focuses on Innovative Digital Tools to Enable Greener Travel
This research included development, design, evaluation and publication of a research methodology and custom-made digital tool ‘Green Travel Planner’ that aimed to encourage more sustainable choices for citizens in day-to-day use and developed an evidence-based usage map of Manchester for improved transport planning and policy decisions.
The research produced a comprehensive review and an innovative approach to developing the next generation of travel planning applications, to better focus these on user engagement, behavioural change, and evidence-based planning for sustainable/greener transport choices.
Updates
+ Research: Analysis of Journey Planner Apps and Best Practice Features
This analysis evaluates twenty multi-transport journey planner applications based on their high-level features, usability, and overall popularity. The final analysis aims to identify best practice qualities and recommendations to inform the future design of digital tools that promote greener travel.
Access the full analysis report here.
+ Research: Occupancy / Emissions Sustainability Metric Matrix
This research evaluates domestic urban transport occupancy and emission metrics to develop an emissions/sustainability matrix for a future Green Travel Planning Tool. By analysing key performance indicators across public and private transportation networks, the research establishes a baseline to accurately compare total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per passenger journey.
Access the full research here.
+ Research: Journey Sustainability Analysis Report
This report evaluates specific multimodal journeys across Manchester’s transport network. It applies the empirical methodology established in the previous framework to demonstrate how geographic location, route differences, and real-time transit factors directly impact localised carbon emissions per traveller.
Access the full report here.
+ Research: Journey planner to enable greener travel
Green Travel Planning Tool leverages real-time IoT data, vehicle occupancy rates, and localised road speeds to calculate and minimise the carbon footprint of multi-modal journeys across Greater Manchester.
+Research: Final App Development Report
This final app development report documents the operational deployment, technical architecture, and user interface design of the completed Green Travel Planning Tool. It transitions the previous theoretical occupancy and emissions frameworks into a functional, live digital tool intended to influence commuter behaviour toward more sustainable travel choices across the Greater Manchester region.
Access the full development report here.
People
Principal Investigator: Tom Jefferies
Co-Investigators: Ulysses Sengupta, Liangxiu Han, Bamidele Adebisi
Researchers: Eric Cheung, Jane Anderson, Khaled M. Rabie
Funding: Innovate UK
Publications
Sengupta, U. (2018). Smart Cities: CityVerve and greener mobility strategies [Lecture]. Lecture to the Nomura Foundation and Japan Development Bank, Manchester City Council, Manchester, United Kingdom.
Sengupta, U. (2019). CityVerve: Greener transport planning with IoT [Invited lecture]. Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo University, Japan.
