New Forest District Council using phone data to help plan future for towns and villages
Local authority says it helps collect data much easier
Last updated 12th Apr 2022
In order to help track footfall and how long people spend in towns and villages, the New Forest District Council is using mobile data to help analyse how to get the most out of high streets.
Insights gained will be used over the long term to inform future council planning, helping to improve the overall high street experience for residents and visitors.
Under the initiative, NFDC has commissioned digital experts to perform the raw intelligence gathering.
It's all funded by the government.
The data is taken from phones anonymously to see what times of the day most people are visiting, whether they leave when it's raining, how long they stay for etc.
The council do not know who's phone the information is coming from.
The data is also backdated to 2019, so they can look at previous trends.
In particular, they will be looking at activity in and around public amenities such as transport hubs, shops, green spaces and play areas.
Cllr Michael Harris, portfolio holder for business, high streets and tourism, said:
“This important work is about learning lessons of how our town centres are used so we can make the experience even more appealing in the future.
“It has been widely reported that town centres across the country have seen a reduction in numbers of people in recent years, partly due to the pandemic and also because of online retail.
“I have no doubt that the insights we gain from this project will help us appraise the bigger picture so we can make decisions that provide optimal benefits for residents, visitors and our local businesses.”