Technology eases community's lives and assists visitors

Dalian resident Su Haitao upgraded his home broadband contract to a 20 Mbps download speed in early March for an annual cost of 1,300 yuan ($207).

"The upgrade allows me to download popular TV dramas and films in minutes," Su said.

Su's family is one of many enjoying the benefits brought by Dalian's improved information infrastructure. Currently, 1.8 million households in the city have fiber-optic connections.

"In 2015, 70 percent of families in the urban area will be equipped with 20 Mbps network connections. All rural families will have access to 4MB network connections," said Feng Yujun, head of the department of Information Promotion at the Dalian Commission of Economy and Information.

In 2013, Dalian was designated a national pilot smart city for both residents and visitors.

It launched a Smart Business District Project in February.

As part of this, a mobile app providing information such as store and restaurant discounts and car park information was released.

The Smart Business District Project is expected to be completed by the end of 2015 and will provide more than 20,000 WiFi connection points in the business area and free WiFi services in more than 40 department stores and supermarkets.

Dalian's administrative departments and tourism authorities are also using the latest technologies to provide convenience for residents and visitors.

The Taoyuan subdistrict of Zhongshan district is developing a cloud-computing-technology based platform to strengthen community management.

According to Liu Jinxiang, a staff member at the Taoyuan subdistrict office, local residents are invited to report any problems on the platform.

The platform has three means of access - via mobile handsets, a website and desktops set up in communities.

"With the help of this platform, we can conveniently analyze their problems and requests," Liu said.

"For instance, we received several suggestions warning of the risk of retaining walls on rainy days. My colleagues checked more than 100 retaining walls on hills and took preventive measures to treat the risk in advance," she said.

tangzhihao@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 03/06/2015 page10)