Building a Smarter Planet. A Smarter Planet Blog.

Most organizations would be surprised if they understood the vastness of the data they’re sitting on at any given point. But the magic happens when that data, through proper analysis and mining, is converted into useful information.

That’s what we’re doing in Miami-Dade County. Using IBM Big Data analytics we’re able to provide a greater level of service to our residents by bringing together information from more than 35 different municipal government departments and agencies. Sharing information in this way will help us solve traffic congestion challenges, improve law enforcement by helping to solve crimes faster, and reduce water waste improving the county’s stewardship of natural resources. Ultimately, such improvements to our operations will allow us to save significant costs and identify new ways to spur economic growth and job creation.

In the case of transit, we don’t have the luxury of building double-decker roads to support additional traffic, but we can certainly do more to unclog our roadways. Working with IBM,
we have a pilot program underway in the Brickell community, for example, that will give residents easy access to transportation alternatives and help better manage traffic flow in and out of the area, especially during special events. It will also provide smart-phone applications for real-time updates of public transportation schedules and anticipated delays.

In addition to improving traffic flow, the pilot transportation project will help drive economic development for local business in the Brickell community through increased ridership on public transit and bring more people into the county’s parks.

In the area of law enforcement, Miami-Dade County is applying an intelligent law enforcement system, taking in information that is available through analytics to help provide police officers with near real-time information. We’re trying to emulate another ecosystem between our law enforcement agencies that allows our police officers to have greater insight
into the genesis of why a crime is committed.

Using IBM’s Big Data analytics, we’re able to find answers to problems, such as better understanding environments that foster certain activities. If we can aid our law enforcement
personnel in recognizing those attributes, then we’re one step ahead. If we can then take that information into more predictive type activities, then we can be more proactive in preventing crime.

With intelligent policing, we’re increasing the capability of our law enforcement personnel by improving their ability to collaborate with other agencies. We’re providing the advanced technology that law enforcement needs to do their jobs within the existing cost structure that they have today, which benefits county tax payers. While we can’t mimic the Minority Report movie and see a crime unfold before it actually happens, we can keep our region safer and solve crimes faster through smarter policing.

Sharing information has allowed us to become better partners with our municipalities, with our neighboring counties and that serves a tremendous purpose creating a better environment to live and work.