

Private networks are driving technology adoption within smart cities by offering secure, reliable, and scalable connectivity for essential applications like video analytics for urban planning and autonomous vehicles. This article delves into the utilisation of private networks in smart cities and highlights the value they deliver.
Overview
Private networks are becoming a cornerstone in the development of smart cities worldwide. These networks are being implemented to meet the rising demand for reliable, low-latency, and secure connectivity in urban environments. This helps support smart city initiatives like intelligent transportation systems, energy management, and public safety solutions. In the United States, advancements such as CBRS have accelerated the adoption of private networks, offering municipalities innovative ways to optimise city operations and services.
What is a smart city?
A smart city is an urban area that leverages technology and data to enhance the quality of life for its residents, improving efficiency in urban operations, and promoting sustainable development. Smart cities integrate advanced technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), data analytics, and connectivity solutions to address urban challenges and optimise resources. These technologies are used to monitor and manage various urban elements, such as transportation, energy, water, waste, and public safety, in real-time.
Key benefits of private networks
Beyond supporting individual use cases, private networks offer strategic benefits that extend across a smart city.
- Enhanced security: Private networks provide a secure environment by operating independently from public networks, significantly reducing vulnerabilities to data breaches, and cyberattacks. For cities, this level of security is crucial in safeguarding sensitive operations such as financial transactions for public services, real-time public safety communications, and the management of critical infrastructure like power grids and water supply systems. By maintaining full control over their network architecture, cities can implement robust encryption protocols, strict access controls, and continuous monitoring to detect and mitigate threats in real-time. This level of security ensures compliance with data protection regulations while fostering public trust in the digital infrastructure of smart cities.
- Greater flexibility and scalability: Private networks are highly adaptable, allowing cities to configure and optimise their connectivity based on specific requirements and evolving demands. Bandwidth allocation can be prioritised for critical applications, such as emergency services or traffic management, ensuring uninterrupted performance during peak usage times. Edge computing, often integrated with private networks, enables the processing of large volumes of data close to the source, ensuring minimal latency for time-sensitive applications like autonomous vehicles or predictive maintenance. Moreover, as cities grow or introduce new smart initiatives, private networks can scale effortlessly, supporting the addition of devices, sensors, and new applications without compromising performance or security.
- Reliable coverage across urban areas: Unlike traditional Wi-Fi networks, private networks are designed to provide consistent and robust coverage across vast and densely populated urban landscapes. This reliability is particularly beneficial for cities with challenging environments, such as high-rise buildings, underground subway systems, or sprawling industrial zones. With private networks, fewer nodes are required to achieve comprehensive coverage, reducing installation and maintenance costs while ensuring seamless connectivity. This makes private networks an ideal solution for connecting public services, such as transportation hubs, parks, and public safety operations, without interruptions or dead zones.
Key smart city use cases
Video analytics for urban planning
Video analytics powered by private networks play a critical role in urban planning by providing actionable insights into city dynamics. They enable the processing of video feeds in real time, allowing cities to analyse footfall patterns, monitor traffic flow, and detect hazards like flooding or damaged infrastructure. These analytics are instrumental for optimising resource allocation, improving public safety, and enhancing the design of urban spaces. Private networks ensure the secure and reliable transfer of video data, supporting applications like crowd management during large events and compliance with privacy laws through localised data processing.
IoT device connectivity
Private networks are a foundational element for IoT device connectivity in smart cities, enabling seamless communication between millions of sensors. These networks provide the reliable, low-latency connectivity needed to support diverse IoT applications, from smart waste management systems that optimise collection routes to environmental sensors that monitor air and water quality in real time. By facilitating real-time data exchange, private networks empower cities to make data-driven decisions, improving operational efficiency and the overall quality of life for residents. Furthermore, the scalability of private networks ensures they can support the growing number of connected devices as cities expand their smart initiatives.
Autonomous vehicles
Private networks are essential for the safe and efficient operation of autonomous vehicles in smart cities, offering the ultra-reliable, low-latency connectivity required for real-time decision-making. These networks enable vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communication, allowing self-driving cars to coordinate with traffic lights, pedestrian crossings, and other vehicles. This coordination improves traffic flow, reduces accidents, and minimises energy consumption. Additionally, private networks support the vast amounts of data generated by autonomous vehicles, processing it at the edge to ensure rapid responses and compliance with data privacy regulations.
Live event streaming and connectivity
For urban events, such as parades, concerts, or sports games, private networks ensure high-quality live streaming by offering dedicated, low-latency connectivity. These networks enable broadcasters to transmit content in real time without disruptions, enhancing the viewing experience for virtual audiences and expanding the event’s reach. By bringing data processing closer to the source through edge computing, private networks can reduce latency and improve streaming reliability, even in crowded environments. This capability not only enriches audience engagement but also supports services like ticketing and security during events.
Example deployments
City of Las Vegas, United States
Las Vegas has been at the forefront of smart city deployment with the largest open municipal network CBRS deployment in the US since 2021. More recently, in October 2024, Vapor IO announced they are rolling out a new AI-enabled private network facilitated by Nvidia hardware across Las Vegas. The AI will be able to process data not only from consumer mobile phones but as well as from cameras around the city. Improved public safety and better traffic automation will be two of the key applications enabled by the new 5G private network. For instance, the CEO of Vapor IO said that the network – running alongside an LLM for inference tasks – could be used in helping to locate lost children and other missing persons.
Bournemouth, United Kingdom
The council of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) have integrated a private 5G network to facilitate seamless communication and data exchange across various sectors to drive improvements in the region’s infrastructure and service. The private 5G network empowers the tri-city area to provide cutting-edge solutions to its residents and businesses by optimising public transportation through real-time monitoring or revolutionising health care accessibility with tele-medicine applications. Additionally, the deployment of a private 5G network paves the way for enhanced transport systems, including smart traffic management, autonomous vehicles, and dynamic routing, ensuring smoother, safer, and more efficient journeys for commuters.
Conclusion
Private networks are revolutionising the way cities operate, providing the secure, reliable, and adaptable infrastructure required to support a wide range of smart city applications. From video analytics for urban planning to live event streaming, private networks are unlocking unprecedented opportunities for cities to improve services, enhance safety, and foster sustainable growth. As more municipalities embrace private networks, the integration of cutting-edge technologies will continue to drive innovation, transforming urban environments into smarter, more connected, and more efficient communities.
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