IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/urbstu/v54y2017i2p501-519.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Competitive urbanism and the limits to smart city innovation: The UK Future Cities initiative

Author

Listed:
  • Nick Taylor Buck

    (The Urban Institute, University of Sheffield, UK)

  • Aidan While

    (University of Sheffield, UK)

Abstract

The technological vision of smart urbanism has been promoted as a silver bullet for urban problems and a major market opportunity. The search is on for firms and governments to find effective and transferable demonstrations of advanced urban technology. This paper examines initiatives by the UK national government to facilitate urban technological innovation through a range of strategies, particularly the TSB Future Cities Demonstrator Competition. This case study is used to explore opportunities and tensions in the practical realisation of the smart city imaginary. Tensions are shown to be partly about the conjectural nature of the smart city debate. Attention is also drawn to weakened capacity of urban governments to control their infrastructural destiny and also constraints on the ability of the public and private sectors to innovate. The paper contributes to smart city debates by providing further evidence of the difficulties in substantiating the smart city imaginary.

Suggested Citation

  • Nick Taylor Buck & Aidan While, 2017. "Competitive urbanism and the limits to smart city innovation: The UK Future Cities initiative," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 54(2), pages 501-519, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:54:y:2017:i:2:p:501-519
    DOI: 10.1177/0042098015597162
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0042098015597162
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/0042098015597162?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kevin Desouza & Akshay Bhagwatwar, 2012. "Citizen Apps to Solve Complex Urban Problems," Journal of Urban Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(3), pages 107-136.
    2. Mike Hodson & Simon Marvin, 2007. "Understanding the Role of the National Exemplar in Constructing ‘Strategic Glurbanization’," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(2), pages 303-325, June.
    3. Jochen Monstadt, 2007. "Urban Governance and the Transition of Energy Systems: Institutional Change and Shifting Energy and Climate Policies in Berlin," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(2), pages 326-343, June.
    4. Robert G. Hollands, 2008. "Will the real smart city please stand up?," City, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(3), pages 303-320, December.
    5. James Evans & Andrew Karvonen, 2014. "‘Give Me a Laboratory and I Will Lower Your Carbon Footprint!’ — Urban Laboratories and the Governance of Low-Carbon Futures," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(2), pages 413-430, March.
    6. COLIN McFARLANE & JONATHAN RUTHERFORD, 2008. "Political Infrastructures: Governing and Experiencing the Fabric of the City," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(2), pages 363-374, June.
    7. Andrew Karvonen & Bas Heur, 2014. "Urban Laboratories: Experiments in Reworking Cities," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(2), pages 379-392, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Charles Leleux & C. William R. Webster, 2018. "Delivering Smart Governance in a Future City: The Case of Glasgow," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(4), pages 163-174.
    2. Zhanna A. Mingaleva & Marina Sheresheva & Matvey Oborin & Tatyana Gvarliani, 2017. "Networking of small cities to gain sustainability," Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues, VsI Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Center, vol. 5(1), pages 140-156, September.
    3. Seunghwan Myeong & Yuseok Jung & Eunuk Lee, 2018. "A Study on Determinant Factors in Smart City Development: An Analytic Hierarchy Process Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-17, July.
    4. Kitchin, Rob & Cardullo, Paolo & Di Feliciantonio, Cesare, 2018. "Citizenship, Justice and the Right to the Smart City," SocArXiv b8aq5, Center for Open Science.
    5. Weimin Kang & Shuliang Zhao & Wei Song & Tao Zhuang, 2019. "Triple helix in the science and technology innovation centers of China from the perspective of mutual information: a comparative study between Beijing and Shanghai," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 118(3), pages 921-940, March.
    6. Daniel S. Oh, 2019. "Building Inter-Personal Competence in Architecture and Urban Design Students through Smart Cities at a Higher Education Institution," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-20, December.
    7. Kummitha, Rama Krishna Reddy, 2018. "Entrepreneurial urbanism and technological panacea: Why Smart City planning needs to go beyond corporate visioning?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 137(C), pages 330-339.
    8. Mora, Luca & Deakin, Mark & Reid, Alasdair, 2019. "Strategic principles for smart city development: A multiple case study analysis of European best practices," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 70-97.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Anthony McLean & Harriet Bulkeley & Mike Crang, 2016. "Negotiating the urban smart grid: Socio-technical experimentation in the city of Austin," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 53(15), pages 3246-3263, November.
    2. Quitzow, Leslie & Rohde, Friederike, 2022. "Imagining the smart city through smart grids? Urban energy futures between technological experimentation and the imagined low-carbon city," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 59(2), pages 341-359.
    3. Perng, Sung-Yueh & Kitchin, Rob & Donncha, Darach Mac, 2017. "Hackathons, entrepreneurship and the passionate making of smart cities," OSF Preprints nu3ec, Center for Open Science.
    4. Leslie Quitzow & Friederike Rohde, 2022. "Imagining the smart city through smart grids? Urban energy futures between technological experimentation and the imagined low-carbon city," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 59(2), pages 341-359, February.
    5. Julie Gamble, 2017. "Experimental Infrastructure: Experiences in Bicycling in Quito, Ecuador," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(1), pages 162-180, January.
    6. Junxi Qian & Yanheng Lu, 2022. "ARCHITECTURE AS SOCIAL LABORATORY: Modernity, Cultural Revival, and Architectural Experiment in Peri‐urban China," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(5), pages 729-748, September.
    7. Jonas Torrens & Phillip Johnstone & Johan Schot, 2018. "Unpacking the Formation of Favourable Environments for Urban Experimentation: The Case of the Bristol Energy Scene," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-28, March.
    8. Trencher, Gregory, 2019. "Towards the smart city 2.0: Empirical evidence of using smartness as a tool for tackling social challenges," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 117-128.
    9. Christopher M. Chini & James F. Canning & Kelsey L. Schreiber & Joshua M. Peschel & Ashlynn S. Stillwell, 2017. "The Green Experiment: Cities, Green Stormwater Infrastructure, and Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-21, January.
    10. Martin Kohler & Anita Engels & Ana Paula Koury & Cathrin Zengerling, 2021. "Thinking Urban Transformation through Elsewhere: A Conversation between Real-World Labs in São Paulo and Hamburg on Governance and Practical Action," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(22), pages 1-23, November.
    11. COLIN McFARLANE & JONATHAN RUTHERFORD, 2008. "Political Infrastructures: Governing and Experiencing the Fabric of the City," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(2), pages 363-374, June.
    12. Daniel Florentin, 2019. "From multi-utility to cross-utilities: The challenges of cross-sectoral entrepreneurial strategies in a German city," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 56(11), pages 2242-2260, August.
    13. Jonathan Rutherford, 2014. "The Vicissitudes of Energy and Climate Policy in Stockholm: Politics, Materiality and Transition," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 51(7), pages 1449-1470, May.
    14. Nancy Odendaal, 2021. "Everyday urbanisms and the importance of place: Exploring the elements of the emancipatory smart city," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 58(3), pages 639-654, February.
    15. Jonathan Rutherford & Olivier Coutard, 2014. "Urban Energy Transitions: Places, Processes and Politics of Socio-technical Change," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 51(7), pages 1353-1377, May.
    16. Hanifa Shah, 2023. "Beyond Smart: How ICT Is Enabling Sustainable Cities of the Future," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-22, August.
    17. Carvajal Bermúdez, Juan Carlos & König, Reinhard, 2021. "The role of technologies and citizen organizations in decentralized forms of participation. A case study about residential streets in Vienna," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    18. Blanchet, Thomas, 2015. "Struggle over energy transition in Berlin: How do grassroots initiatives affect local energy policy-making?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 246-254.
    19. Nyberg, Roy A., 2018. "Using ‘smartness’ to reorganise sectors: Energy infrastructure and information engagement," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 60-68.
    20. Bauknecht, Dierk & Bischoff, Thore & Bizer, Kilian & Heyen, Dirk Arne & Führ, Martin & Gailhofer, Peter & Proeger, Till & von der Leyen, Kaja, 2019. "Exploring the pathways: Regulatory experiments for Sustainable Development - An interdisciplinary approach," ifh Working Papers 22/2019, Volkswirtschaftliches Institut für Mittelstand und Handwerk an der Universität Göttingen (ifh).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:54:y:2017:i:2:p:501-519. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.gla.ac.uk/departments/urbanstudiesjournal .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.