Brisbane City Council to install 20 smart poles with Wi-Fi, phone chargers, noise monitoring

Brisbane will soon be dotted with “smart poles” up to 10m high that can charge phones, track rising flood waters, monitor noise levels and expand the city’s Wi-Fi network at a cost of $2.1m.

Amanda Cooper with an example of the Brisbane Smart Pole.

BRISBANE will pay $2.1M for 20 “smart poles” up to 10m tall that can charge phones, track rising flood waters, expand the city’s Wi-Fi network — and be street lights.

Brisbane City Council will vote today on a $2.1m contract to build and maintain the poles in 20 locations, including the CBD, major skate parks and recreational hubs, for ten years.

The recommended tenderer is ENE.HUB, a Sydney-based company with another office in Los Angeles, which is wholly owned by Canadian outfit Brookfield Infrastructure Partners.

During a presentation to the Infrastructure Committee Meeting, a council officer said the design was chosen partly because it was less cluttered and unsightly than other options.

Infrastructure chair Amanda Cooper said the high-tech infrastructure could monitor real time data such as pedestrian and cyclist traffic, noise levels, cyclist and pedestrian traffic.

“The poles will also have the capacity to be leased to telecommunication providers for high-speed 5G wireless internet,” she said.

He assured councillors there was a range of colours the poles could be painted, including grey and black.

The smart poles can be customised to suit each location, so some may focus on pedestrian and cycling data, others on Wi-Fi and USB charging ports, or monitoring flood waters.

Pedestrian and cycling data may help to determine the origin and destination of the active commuters and inform the bicycle and footpath network.

The council specifically asked ENE.HUB to remove capabilities such as a CCTV camera, public address system, visual display screen and parking monitoring from its proposal.

Independent Cr Nicole Johnston (Tennyson) asked for the radiation spill area of the poles but was told her query would need to be taken on notice.

The council received 12 proposals for the delivery of smart poles in Brisbane, and the successful tenderer will deliver the first stage of the Brisbane Smart Poles project later this year.

Cr Cooper said 59 potential sites had already been identified for the poles to be installed, however stage one of the project would focus on civic and open spaces, streets and pathways as well as skate parks.

The poles also have a “beacon” at the top which can be lit in different colours, which LNP Cr Steve Toomey (The Gap) suggested could be used for a very specific purpose.

“Say for example the Broncos are playing – could it be maroon and yellow?” he asked.

“We could incentivise the (Queensland) Reds to say, you know, win a couple of rugby matches and you could be on the pole.”

He was told it was possible.

FULL LIST OF SMART POLE SITES

Mount Coot-tha Botanic Gardens, Mount Coot-tha

Reddacliff Place, Brisbane City

City Botanic Gardens, Brisbane City

Albert Street, Spring Hill

Captain Burke Park, Kangaroo Point

Kangaroo Point Cliffs, Kangaroo Point

China Town Mall, Fortitude Valley

Goodwill Bridge/Gardens Point Road, Brisbane City

Logan Road, Woolloongabba

Brunswick Street Mall, Fortitude Valley

Queen and Albert Streets, Brisbane City

Corner of Queen and Edward Streets, Brisbane City

Corner of Edward and Alice Streets, Brisbane City

Albert Street near Charlotte Street, Brisbane City

Albert Street near Margaret Street, Brisbane City

Corner of Roma, Albert and Turbot Streets, Brisbane City

Paddington Skate Park, Paddington

Parkland Boulevard, Brisbane City

Telegraph Road Skate Park, Fitzgibbon

Wynnum Foreshore, Wynnum