Imagine an app that updates the locations of apartments for rent in real time, or intelligent street lights that only turn green when cars are waiting.

Or picture a map — Minority Report-style, of course — that aggregates crime data, pinpointing areas where assaults and robberies occur most often.

All are ideas actually under consideration by the cities of Vancouver and Surrey, which have teamed up to compete for the $50-million jackpot offered by the federal Smart Cities Challenge.

Read the full story at cbc.ca.