Smart Street Lighting Systems for Sustainable Smart Cities: A Conceptual Framework

The rapid growth of urban population has significantly complicated urban planning and management. This paper examines the connected street lighting network as an innovative infrastructure solution for smart cities by integrating cutting-edge technologies into widespread street lighting network systems. Through a comprehensive literature review and expert consultancy, the study categorizes the predominant components of smart street lighting (SSL) and evaluates their potential contribution to sustainability and urban digital transformation. Among global researchers, China, Spain, and India stand out as the leading countries in this field. Furthermore, it is enhanced that the proposed connected lighting network not only increases the energy efficiency of cities and reduces their carbon footprint, but also contributes significantly to the improvement of human and ecological quality of life and the effective monitoring of various urban planning services. The study inferred that a connected street lighting system affects all six key smart city dimensions with the most substantial contribution (30%) to the smart living dimension. Additionally, the system aligns with nine of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), most prominently supporting SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities).