Connected Community / Smart City TO

A smart city improves access to the information and data a city needs to help it become an economically, socially and environmentally-connected community. The City’s goal is to ensure that people are included and easily connected – not divided – in this digital city. This could mean finding new ways for residents and businesses to improve navigating Toronto or accessing City services or even engaging with their local government.

Here are some examples of how we’re using technology and data to improve connection and convenience:

• Free W-Fi Pilot Project trials the provision of free Wi-Fi to apartment neighbourhoods;
• Transportation Innovation Zones test transportation and public realm approaches and technologies in a real-world environment;
• Open Data helps solve civic issues; and
• Automated water meters send water use data directly to the City for reading and billing purposes.

Cities for Digital Rights

In June 2019, City Council directed City staff to sign on to the Declaration of Cities Coalition for Digital Rights. In signing the declaration and becoming a member of this coalition, Toronto has joined a network of nearly 50 cities around the world helping each other in the field of digital rights based policy-making.