CITYMIRROR

BY DATACORRIDOR

City assessment

How smart is Preston?

Preston, United Kingdom, scores 79.9% against the ISO 37120-series aligned smart city framework in 2026, ranked #125 of 386 by smart reach and #55 on the evidence alone, with every finding traceable to a public source.

Each criterion counts in full where the evidence shows it present, half where partial and nothing where absent, weighted by its category. 4 of 86 are not yet assessed and count as nothing until a finding is made either way. Last assessed 24 Oct 2026.

Smart reach rank

#125 / 386

Smart score

79.9%

Evidenced rank

#55 / 387

Criteria present

62 / 86

Evidence coverage

87.2%

Preston's smart city score by area

Data, Digital & Smart Foundation91%

13 present · 1 partial · 0 absent · 1 not yet assessed

Mobility & Transport65%

7 present · 1 partial · 2 absent · 2 not yet assessed

Environment, Energy & Climate80%

9 present · 3 partial · 1 absent

Infrastructure, Water & Waste83%

8 present · 2 partial · 1 absent

Health, Education, Safety & Inclusion77%

9 present · 2 partial · 2 absent

Economy, Innovation & Employment88%

6 present · 2 partial · 0 absent

Governance, Resilience & Operating Model78%

10 present · 2 partial · 1 absent · 1 not yet assessed

Where Preston is strong

  • ▸Open Data & Transparency
  • ▸Digital Government Services
  • ▸Public Transport & Real-Time Information
  • ▸Water & Sanitation
  • ▸Health & Digital Health

Where the evidence shows gaps

  • ▸Active & Shared Mobility · 2 absent, 1 partial
  • ▸Solid Waste & Circular Economy · 1 absent, 1 partial
  • ▸Public Safety & Emergency · 1 absent, 1 partial
  • ▸Governance & Smart-City Operating Model · 1 absent, 1 partial
  • ▸Air Quality & Monitoring · 1 absent

Not yet assessed

4 of 86 criteria have no finding yet, either way. They count as nothing in the score until one is made, and they are not gaps.

  • Smart Traffic & Electric Vehicles2 of 4
  • Climate Adaptation & Heat1 of 3
  • Connectivity & ICT Infrastructure1 of 4

Evidence highlights

Open Data & Transparency · Official open data portal

Preston City Council publishes content on data.gov.uk, which is described as the 'National Data Library' and 'the home of UK public data', indicating it is a government-run open data portal.

https://data.gov.uk/search?filters%5Bpublisher%5D=Preston+City+Council

Open Data & Transparency · Clear open licensing

All content published on data.gov.uk, including that from Preston City Council, is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0, unless otherwise stated.

https://data.gov.uk/search?filters%5Bpublisher%5D=Preston+City+Council

Open Data & Transparency · Programmatic API access

The Bus Open Data Service provides programmatic API access to its datasets, allowing users to experiment with interactive API services for bus data relevant to Preston.

https://data.bus-data.dft.gov.uk/

Digital Government Services · Digital identity / single sign-on

The Preston municipal government offers a 'selfserve' portal where residents can sign in and register an account, indicating access to services via a digital identity.

https://www.preston.gov.uk/selfserve

Funding Preston can bid for

64 open calls: grants, tenders and innovation competitions Preston is eligible for, including UK-wide schemes any place can apply to. Every entry links to its source.

Showing 12 of 64; see them all in the explorer.

About this assessment

Preston was assessed against the 86 criteria of the ISO 37120-series aligned smart city framework on 24 Oct 2026 by AI agents gathering evidence from official public sources. Each criterion is marked present, partial or absent, or left not yet assessed, and every finding links to where it was found. Cities are re-assessed in runs, not continuously: the latest finished on 24 Oct 2026.

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