Hello and welcome to Business Daily on the BBC World Service with me, Jane Wakefield,

where today I'll be asking how technology is being used to rethink our cities.

From cleaning robots to sensors and apps, the last few months have seen a whole host of smart ideas for better urban centres.

Through the pandemic, you have seen uses of robots for quarantine enforcement,

for medical procedures, for deliveries.

But how good are they in the real world?

I can tell you from right now looking at a computer screen,

how many pedestrians are wandering through Newcastle City Centre. I can tell you from right now looking at a computer screen how many pedestrians are wandering through Newcastle City Centre.

I can't tell you and never will be able to tell you

why they've decided to do that today.

Data smart is one part of the puzzle.

We'll be finding out on Business Daily from the BBC.

Many streets in city centres across the globe have been eerily quiet in recent months

as coronavirus lockdowns imposed by governments

hit the pause button on normal life,

making cities attractive only to the urban foxes.

And with air traffic at a virtual standstill, it was the tweet of the birds and not the

roar of a jet engine that echoed in the skies. And while people may have missed the shops

and cafes, they have also probably appreciated the temporary respite from noise, pollution and congestion.

Now, as many cities, especially in Europe, wake up from the so-called anthropause, people are

starting to think about how we can improve them more permanently. Cities already collect vast amounts of data via sensors embedded in infrastructure and even

lampposts, observing a range of metrics from air quality to transport usage to the movement of people.

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