Don’t stand so close to me – managing social distancing in public spaces

With the easing of lockdown restrictions, much attention is being paid to the ‘new normal’ of managing social distancing in public spaces. In my local area, Lambeth Council have narrowed some roads to widen footpaths to ensure people can pass each other at an appropriate distance. Navigating our public spaces safely is critical.

But how can we use technology and data to optimise our public spaces? And how can we do this in a way that preserves privacy while keeping us safe?

These were just a couple of the questions addressed in panel discussion chaired by Timandra Harkness, Writer, author of ‘Big Data: Does Size Matter?’ and member of the Royal Statistical Society working group on Data Ethics; hosted by the Benchmark Initiative.

Speakers included:

• Freyja Lockwood, Smart City and Innovation Manager, Bristol City Council
• Alex Barnes, Co-Founder Lanterne, creator of the Crowdless app.
• Indy Johar, Architect, Co Founder & Executive Director at Dark Matter Laboratories

I’ve previously touched on some of the issues and tech approaches to tracking social distancing at work.

Tech and data interventions

Bristol City Council is looking at how do you keep people safe while opening up business and shopping areas. Essential here is using data to inform decision making. Bristol has two main shopping areas with a mix of individual shops and outside spaces. The challenge comes in determining capacity, how many people are going in and out of the areas, and predicting how that space is used.

Bristol has an Operations Centre that uses CCTV and traffic management systems. The Operations Centre is staffed and there’s ongoing monitoring of activity.  The focus is at looking at how traffic and people flow through the built environment and the patterns of movement. The key question raised was what sorts of solutions exist to better facilitate the safe movement of people through shopping areas.

One approach is to use tech and data to avoid crowds. An example is the Crowdless App. The App provides live data on supermarkets using existing data sources (3rd party anonymised data through mobiles) and crowdsourced data. The aim is to help people avoid supermarkets at busy times. At the time of this discussion, and about seven weeks after launch, they have 55k active users, and the app had been translated into seven languages.

Reimagining the City

Covid-19 has radically changed how we navigate the built environment and has implications for how we navigate it in the future. Over the last few months we’ve seen the prioritisation of the local – of parks, shops, footpaths. Schools with once closed off playing fields have opened them to public use.

Questions are being asked about whether our business and shopping districts remain operational with requirements for social distancing. And questions are being asked about many of our workplaces and if they are still fit for purpose. The reality is that high streets will be hit further with declines in sales. Many businesses are looking at 30% to 50% less workspace for those with jobs that can largely be done at home.

Managing Covid-19 allows us the opportunity to reimagine cities and towns and how we navigate them. Tech only provides a part of the solution. We need to remain mindful of what some tech, particularly surveillance and tracking tech, might mean for privacy.

What’s next for managing social distancing in public spaces?

The role of data and tech has been amplified with the global pandemic. While it has led to some real positives including improved data management at local levels and a real community drive towards open data, a number of core issues are clear. These include:

• the need for organisations and companies to clearly explain the purpose of data collection, how the data will be used and stored, how privacy will be maintained, and what the life cycle of the data is (i.e. can it be repurposed)
• the importance of striking the right balance between individual rights and social good. Here the issue of governance and appropriate independent oversight is critical.

There are real risks, tech and data can be used in ways that does real harm. But on the flipside, there are opportunities if developed and used in ways to enable citizen engagement and activity. This is about design and how systems are operationalised.