UK cities urged to use Moneyball-style big data to improve transport and reduce crime

The think-tank Policy Exchange said most cities collect vast quantities of data but many don’t use it effectively

There is hope that big data can help transform economic forecasting (Getty)

UK cities need to revolutionise the services they offer by using Moneyball-style big data to improve transport, reduce crime and help grow local business, a report claims.

The think-tank Policy Exchange said most cities collect vast quantities of data but many don’t use it effectively.

It calls on cities to use the new power and money they are being given by Whitehall to set up dedicated data teams to transform the way they allocate resources. Among the examples of “smart data” that cities could use include:

* Using data on historic house and business fires to identify properties most at risk of future blazes.

* Cycling accidents could be prevented by requiring HGVs to share their GPS data with city authorities. This could be used to warn cyclists of the most dangerous routes and help prioritise spending on new bike lanes.

* Milton Keynes installed sensors in public rubbish bins, enabling waste collection routes to be optimised to collect only those bins that actually need emptying.