Minato Mirai waterfront development in Yokohama, Japan’s largest Designated City
Japan’s Diet (parliament) passed updated legislation for the creation of ‘super cities’ where artificial intelligence, big data with other advanced technologies are to be widely introduced to improve mobility, disaster preparation, medical services and education.
The Bill amending the National Strategic Special Zones Law removes regulatory hurdles and complexity delaying or preventing rolling-out smart city applications. Restrictions lifted by the advent of the coronavirus pandemic aim to speed the Bill’s adoption. In April, Japan’s health ministry eased rules letting first-time patients receive medical examinations and prescriptions online or via telephone.
The National Strategic Special Zones are designated by the national government to boost the international competitiveness of Japanese industries and create centres of global economic activities through advancing structural reform.
Under the legislation, after proven backing from residents, municipalities submit smart city plans to ministries with successful bids then selected by the Cabinet Office. The Cabinet Office then works with relevant government agencies to provide exceptions to regulations, offering a more streamline and accelerated authorisation for services to start up.
The Super City vision (link to Cabinet Office PDF in English) focuses on using data linkage platforms, under the moniker of ‘city operating system’ (OS). The OS collects data from central and local government, companies and citizens to enable services such as facial recognition access, cashless payments, self-driving vehicles, localised energy models and remote video diagnosis.
Tokyo has received applications from 51 municipalities competing for official ‘super city’ designation in areas such as transport, digital money and healthcare. According to reports in the Japanese media, around five hope to be selected later this year.
A new approach to smart cities in the regions
Aizuwakamatsu City in Fukushima Prefecture is building Japan’s leading smart city, in a region famous for its sake and samurai traditions. One example is Takeda General Hospital, where management is trialing a payment system using QR codes for electronic payments. TIS, the company that developed the network also wants it to be the norm for tax payments, transportation and regular purchases.
TIS’s vision is to reduce the time people have to stay in hospitals by offering services like online booking of appointments and medicine delivery. The company also plans preventive health services, like remote medical care and artificial intelligence-based diagnoses.
Other companies in Aizuwakamatsu, are strengthening transport services, schools, energy, farming and industrial production. These include NEC, Toppan Printing, Coca-Cola, SoftBank Group and Mitsubishi, all collaborating at the AiCT innovation centre, according to Nikkei Asia Review.
As a small regional city, Aizuwakamatsu has a unique development model for smart services, where residents can choose to give their data in return for access to services, gaining the trust of local citizens using such projects, as well as securing the future viability of the service.
The City aims to persuade local citizens by pus the clear benefits of opting in. Transparency guarantees that people’s personal information is secure, and the community oversees data management.
20% of locals have registered for some smart services, expected to rise to 30% by the end of fiscal 2020. The final target is to have around 70% of citizens, with bundles of services offered together with opt-outs, at which point stakeholders can view the project as a success.
Reference: ‘Japan passes ‘super cities’ bill to reduce delays in technology roll-outs’; https://cities-today.com/japan-passes-super-city-bill-to-reduce-regulatory-barriers/
