Smart cities could save drivers almost one full working day a year as traffic-management and smart parking initiatives are predicted to save some 4.2 billion hours a year by 2021.

The research, carried out by Juniper Research, estimates that about two million smart parking spaces will be in global use within five years, improving both commercial and private traffic flow.

The shift towards smarter cities will come as resources are put under increasing pressure by a rise in population in urban areas and a need to improve competitiveness and quality of life for citizens.

"Facilitating the movement of citizens within urban agglomerations via transport networks is fundamental to a city's economic growth," says research author Steffen Sorrell. "Congestion reduces businesses' competitiveness and contributes to so-called brain drain."

One of the major pillars of traffic-easing measures is the establishment of viable public transport networks in a bid to move private cars off the roads.

Smart street lighting

The use of smart street lighting, with micro-controlled LED units and sensors, is also expected to grow significantly in the next five years. Juniper predicted more than half of installed LED fixtures would be networked by 2021.

The new systems would not only cut energy bills but, through additional sensors, would be able to support additional services such as wifi or enable retail marketing. That could help generate much- needed revenue for cities.

In May, an international expert in digital planning for cities, Volker Buscher of global consultancy group Arup, said digital technologies were now an integral part of transport, health and education systems and services in cities, and it was not a choice of when or if cities would use technology, but how authorities could optimise the technologies to improve citizens' lives.