The City of Colorado Springs is proud to be a Smart City. The City of Colorado Springs Smart City program leverages data, technology, and automation through a culture of innovation to address our community’s critical needs and enhance our quality of life. The City of Colorado Springs is constantly working to identify and implement new and innovative ways of using technology in support of our City's Strategic Plan.
The City of Colorado Springs is also a member of the Colorado Smart Cities Alliance, the first state-wide alliance of government, business and allied organizations dedicated to advancing smarter communities in the United States.
SmartCOS Projects
Curious about what smart programs and technologies the City of Colorado Springs are currently utilizing to better address the needs of its residents? Check out a few of our smart projects below!
CSFD Special Operations Unit
Department
Colorado Springs Fire Department
Project Description
The CSFD Special Operations Unit uses three drones (two operational and one back up) to assist incident command and firefighters on a variety of scenes, including, but not limited to: missing hikers/climbers, high angle rescues, smoke investigation, structure fires, wildfires and swift water rescues. The Special Operations Unit launched in August 2023.
How is this project "smart?"
The Special Operations Unit's drones are equipped with GPS, infrared cameras, speakers and will soon include a payload system. The Special Operations Unit is able to use these drones to locate smoke or a missing hiker from an aerial view and give direct incident coordinates to firefighters, significantly reducing the time for crews to mobilize and mitigate issues. Infrared technology enables firefighters to see through smoke in structure fires, allowing for more precise decision-making for firefighters and homeowners.
CSPD Real-Time Crime Center
Department
Colorado Springs Police Department
Project Description
CSPD's Real-Time Crime Center (RTCC) utilizes Fusus, a real-time crime center platform, to be able to assess and respond to crimes in progress and conduct crime reduction strategies in a more timely manner. The RTCC project began in early 2023.
How is this project "smart?"
The RTCC integrates citywide public, private and government camera feeds, CSPD's computer-aided dispatch program. Citizens are also allowed to share their surveillance footage or register their security cameras with CSPD, providing investigators with the ability to contact potential witnesses without the need for door-to-door inquiries.
Additionally, the RTCC includes the ability to deploy drones to respond to service calls through its drones as first responders program, which allows RTCC personnel and drone operators to monitor unfolding events or observe a situation as it is being dispatched. Recorded footage can serve as vital evidence, supporting the prosecution of offenders and ensuring accountability.
Listen to the Behind the Springs Podcast Episode on Together COS
Axon Enterprise System
Department
Colorado Springs Police Department
Project Description
In 2024, CSPD experienced critical failures to its existing body worn camera (BWC) and digital evidence (DEMS) systems, both of which are crucial for law enforcement and required by law. CSPD contracted with Axon Enterprise, an international leader in BWC, digital evidence and police-artificial intelligence integration.
How is this project "smart?"
Axon's systems replaced CSPD's existing BWC and digital evidence systems with a single platform. Axon's livestreaming and drone functionality is utilized in CSPD's Real Time Crime Center and supports CSPD's drone as a first responder program.
Axon systems automatically generate data and categorize it for officers. Axon's systems take data generated by BWC and associated systems to generate police reports, autmatically transcribe and more. This system is one of the key data-driven systems for the city.
Roadway Assessment Data Collection
Department
Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department
Project Description
The Department of Public Works has, through an RFP process, hired a consultant in 2016, 2020 and 2024 to drive what is lovingly reffered to as a "Ghostbusters Car" down each City road and rate the overall condition every 100 feet in both directions to help inform the City's infrastructure improvements.
How is this project "smart?"
The "Ghostbusters Car" collects data on our City's roads with cameras, lasers and other visual measures to capture and assess assets while driving the posted speed limiit. Through the data collection enabled by the "Ghostbusters Car," the City has the ability to evaluate types of road distress, the severity and area of extent of each type of distress. This pavement distress data is then used to calculate an "Inspected Overall Condition Index" (or OCI), a number between 0-100 that rates ride quality/roughness and allows the department to prioritize spot treatments or entire segment replacements.
The City partners with surrounding communities, like the City of Woodland Park and the Pikes Peak Area Council of Governments so that they too can take advantage of the technology for their jurisdictions.
ElevateCOS - Smart Glass Windows
Department
Colorado Springs Airport
Project Description
ElevateCOS is a three-year project taken on by the Colorado Springs Airport to renovate the concourse in an effort to make it more modern, accessible and sustainable. Changes to the airport have included new lighting, new flooring, bathroom upgrades, larger hold rooms, charging stations, airline gate counters, new food and retail options and more.
How is this project "smart?"
One aspect of the ElevateCOS concourse renovation project is the installation of Sage Glass windows. Sage Glass windows come with a control system that tints and clears the glass based on a predictive algorithm and real-time weather data. These smart glass windows at the Colorado Springs Airport provide daylight and views with significantly less glare and reduced energy use, improving the passenger experience and postively impacting the HVAC use in the terminal.
Smart Irrigation and Robotic Field Liners
Department
Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department
Project Description
The Urban Parks Division of the Colorado Springs Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department is using smart controllers, master valves and flow and rain sensors in the majority of the City's urban parks to aid with irrigation. The Division has maintained the smart irrigation system since 2010.
The Division also uses a robotic field liner, which enables the Division to automate the marking of fields for various sporting and citywide events. The robotic field liner is new to the Division as of 2024.
How is this project "smart?"
Smart controllers coupled with flow sensors allow users to schedule irrigation based on local weather patterns and to send automated alerts when things are wrong with the irrigation system, automating a process that would otherwise involve manual monitoring and scheduling.
The use of the autonomous field liner has allowed parks staff to focus their attention on higher impact tasks and transformed what once took numerous employees into something that requires only a single staff member.
Contact
Know of a project that should be listed here? Or just have questions about the SmartCOS program? Feel free to reach out to us at COSSmartCity.SMB@ColoradoSprings.gov.