A new Athens smart waste collection initiative has been implemented in the commercial centre of the Greek capital.
The Athens smart waste service, developed by Vodafone Greece subsidiary and Internet of Things (IoT) specialist Vodafone Innovus, has deployed waste collection lorries equipped with sensors throughout the city’s Commercial Triangle. The smart lorries are able to identify their location and alert nearby businesses when they are passing, enabling business operators to transport their waste directly to the lorry as it arrives rather than leaving unsightly bags or bins in the street for collection.
Haris Broumidis, Chairman and CEO of Vodafone Greece, said: “We have laid the foundations of a smart city by equipping the municipality with state of the art technologies that will make the everyday life of professionals and citizens in the Commercial Triangle easier and give value to the city’s services. We strategically invest in IoT, since we believe it is a technology that will change people’s lives, cities’ daily routine, and businesses’s operation for the better.”
Greek MP and former Mayor of Athens Giorgos Kaminis said: “[The Athens smart waste collection programme] reflects the new participatory governance model that we have chosen to implement in the city: not on our own, but along with every citizen. Together with the area’s shopkeepers, with whom we are in constant dialogue; [and] together with trusted partners such as Vodafone Greece, we have cooperated through the Digital Council and offer new, innovative services to the city together with the area’s residents and visitors, as our concern is to make the city centre a destination for promenade and recreation. The smart waste collection, with new urban equipment, pedestrian areas, modern lighting and rules in public space management, are transforming the Athens Commercial Triangle into what must be a modern metropolitan centre – and it is an example of how a modern capital such as Athens can operate in a co-operative and efficient manner.”
