The first smart street in Kolozsvár (Cluj-Napoca, Klausenburg), Molnar Piuariu (Szalay in Hungarian) Street, was recently declared the winner in the “Best Public Space” category at the Temesvár/Timişoara Biennial of Architecture (Beta), the maszol.ro news portal reported.
Located in a residential area of Kolozsvár that is commonly referred to in Romanian as the “Groapa” (“The Pit”), Molnar Piuariu Street was revamped into a smart street this past July.
As mayor of Kolozsvár, Emil Boc announced at the unveiling ceremony that the city’s first smart street is actually the first of its kind in Romania. It was a project of City Hall, funded by the European Union, an investment worth RON 5.9 million (about EUR 1.2 million).
The street has 551 square meters of green area and a sensor-based irrigation system. It has four charging stations for electric cars and 30 charging stations for bicycles or electric scooters. More than a dozen large parking spaces have been created for vehicles, yet the street is still specifically pedestrian-friendly. People can use USB sockets to charge their phones while resting on the new, modern street furniture and can also benefit from free Wi-Fi. A smart street lighting system has also been installed.
“The first smart street in Romania has all the facilities of a modern, green public space, adapted to the current technological and urban mobility realities, Mayor Boc pointed out in his Facebook post in July.
The Temesvár Biennial of Architecture was first organized in 1996. It was created as a platform for responsible dialogue on architecture, architectural education and professional practices, with the ultimate goal of improving the development of Romanian cities. The competition is open to all those who contribute to quality architecture. This year, the event took place between September 25 and October 25, and organizers awarded prizes in the categories of built space, interior space, public space, graduation projects, initiatives/experiments, essays and photography.
Title image: The mayor of Kolozsvár, Emil Boc (R), proudly presented the gadgets of the first smart street in the city at the opening ceremony.
Source: Emil Boc/Facebook page
