The 8 projects at the core of Smart Columbus Columbus set out to test more than a dozen ideas when it won the Smart Cities challenge in 2016. But not all of those ideas made it to the finish line. Over the course of the program, the city scaled back, revised or altogether dropped projects as various challenges emerged, ultimately focusing on eight core initiatives detailed in a June 2021 report to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Here's a look at those eight projects that came to define the Smart Columbus program, according to its summary report. A data backbone The Smart Columbus Operating System (SCOS) was designed as a centralized platform to collect, manage and share transportation data across city systems. Built using open-source code, it aimed to give agencies, researchers and developers a way to analyze real-time information related to transit. The system ultimately aggregated more than 2,000 datasets and enabled a data-sharing platform Columbus previously lacked. Cars that can communicate The Connected Vehicle Environment (CVE) project was a pilot program that used wireless technology to allow vehicles and traffic infrastructure to "talk" to each other. The goal was to improve safety and traffic flow by sending alerts about hazards like red lights or sudden braking, while also enabling signals to prioritize emergency responders. The system was deployed at 85 intersections and in more than 1,000 vehicles. More than 300 people participated in the pilot project along North High Street, Morse Road and Cleveland Avenue. An app for trip-planning The Pivot app was meant to bring Columbus' transportation offerings – buses, scooters, ride-hailing and more – into a single platform where users could plan, book and pay for trips based on their preferences. Smart Columbus' former executive director, Jordan Davis, told The Dispatch in July 2023 that the