Amsterdam and Copenhagen are the most “bike friendly” cities in the world. Just think that the idea of “bike sharing” was born in Amsterdam, where the problems of traffic congestion do not concern cars, but bicycles and pedestrians.
In the city of the Netherlands, which has become an example of a smart city to be imitated since the nineties, current policies are mainly focused on the “Amsterdam Circular Strategy 2020-2025” project. This is a plan based on the circular economy and environmental sustainability, which has the goal of making Amsterdam the first city in the world with a completely circular internal economy by the year 2050. The implementation of this projet provides for a reduced use of new raw materials through an intelligent management of the life cycle of the products which involves an increase in their duration to minimize waste. This strategy also includes reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 55% by 2030 and by 75% by 2040, compared to 1990 levels. For this reason, car sharing and the use of electric cars are being promoted more and more in the Dutch capital, through efficient services. For example, electric cars can be easily parked in areas equipped with suitable charging stations.
Amsterdam stands out from all other European cities for the intertwining of its canals crossed by characteristic bridges. Currently, one of these bridges has become a real resource in "data collection". This is the MX3D pedestrian bridge, 40 feet long (12.192 meters), which crosses one of the oldest canals in Amsterdam (Oudezijds Achterburgwal). The steel bridge is the first in the world printed in 3D and it has the characteristic of being an "intelligent bridge". In fact, it is equipped with sensors that transmit data to the "cloud"; the data, once processed and interpreted, are used to display information on the traffic of the bridge, on the structural integrity, on the neighborhood and on the surrounding environment. The bridge is put in communication with the surrounding roads to allow the optimization of the signaling times of the traffic lights, in order to reduce traffic congestion during peak hours. MX3D is also equipped with an intelligent system capable of sending maintenance request signals in case of need.
Another smart feature of the city is The Edge office building in the heart of the city's financial district (Zuidas). It is a 40,000 m2 skyscraper, elected the “greenest office in the world” with a BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) score of 98.36%; a result like this had never been recorded by the Bre (Building research establishment).
Bre is a British agency that deals with evaluating the sustainability of buildings, taking into consideration parameters such as: the use of alternative energy sources, the materials used, the means of transport with which a building can be reached and others technical measures that guarantee the health and productivity of the employees who work in those environments.
The most innovative and interesting features of The Edge building are:
Material used - the building is made of glass and wood; reinforced concrete is present only in the load-bearing structures.
Total energy self-sufficiency (despite the enormous size) - the building's heating system uses four thousand square meters of solar panels. These are located on the facades and on the roof of the building; due to their orientation, they can capture the sun's rays as long as possible. The Edge, whose structure has been designed taking into account the path of the sun, is able to produce more current than it consumes.
Smart lighting - the building's LED lighting system is capable of automatically adjusting energy consumption. This system is integrated with 30,000 sensors that continuously measure crowding, movement, lighting levels, humidity and temperature.
Rainwater recovery system - rainwater is collected on the roof of the building and it is used to wash the toilets and to irrigate the green and garden areas surrounding the building.
Thermal energy storage - there are two wells, about 130 m deep, which reach an aquifer and allow the differentials of thermal energy to be stored in the subsoil, in depth.
Cycle paths and areas dedicated to public transport, that reach the entrance of the building.
An app to connect to the building - each employee has an app on their smartphone, which allows them to find parking, report problems to the team that takes care of the structures, navigate inside the building and contact other colleagues. Employees can also take advantage of customized lighting and temperature in their workspace.
Remaining in the context of smart initiatives, in the province of North Holland there is the municipality of Edam-Volendam with its characteristic villages. The villages of Edam and Volendam are worth mentioning for the remotely controlled and operated intelligent lighting system. The installation, based on the need for light on the roads, ensures automatic adjustment of the lighting. In this way more light is provided to the dark alleys to improve the feeling of safety, while, in residential areas, the darkening of the street lights guarantees less annoyance to the inhabitants. The intelligent lighting system also intervenes on road safety by automatically, detecting faulty lamps; in this way it is possible to obtain a quick repair and a good functioning of the whole system. In addition, the constant monitoring of energy consumption ensures optimal energy savings.
