Darwin Smart City data shows adherence to social distancing

SMART City data has shown that Darwin residents complied with coronavirus lockdown restrictions during April with less people visiting the city compared to the previous two months.

SMART City data has shown that Darwin residents complied with coronavirus lockdown restrictions during April with less people visiting the city compared to the previous two months.

Data taken from smart poles at Bicentennial Park showed that just 108 new users joined council’s free Wi-Fi service compared to 173 in March and 169 during February.

There was also a 19.2 per cent decrease in existing users visiting the area.

Data also showed pedestrians remained on the move with the average visit time dropping from 74 minutes in January down to just 34 minutes in April.

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Darwin council innovation, growth and development general manager Josh Sattler said the innovative technology providing the data verified Darwin residents were doing the right thing during the strict coronavirus restrictions period.

“The statistics across Wi-Fi use and parking appear to indicate that the Darwin community has taken social distancing very seriously during the COVID-19 response,” he said.

“The joint $10 million investment in Smart Technology by City of Darwin, Federal and Northern Territory Governments in 2019 has provided many opportunities to capture meaningful information that will underpin decisions regarding Darwin’s future.”

One of the smart street lights in place around Darwin. Picture: Glenn Campbell

City parking sensors also showed there were less people visiting the city with just 45,672 parking sessions logged in April, 34 per cent less than March’s 69,415 sessions.

But, the amount of time people parked for increased by 18.8 per cent from 53 minutes in March to an hour and three minutes in April, indicating there was a change in shopping habits with people visiting the city less often but staying longer during each visit.

Darwin Council recently announced they were seeking investors to engage with council on unrolling the Smart City technology into Darwin’s suburbs as part of council’s strategic projects prospectus.

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The Smart City technology was first introduced at the end of May last year.