National Geographic says Chattanooga among the world's smartest cities

photo The Delta Queen is docked on the North Shore of the Chattanooga riverfront near Coolidge Park.

National Geographic has named Chattanooga one of the top 50 smartest cities in the world.

In its October issue, the monthly magazine lists Chattanooga among its 2014 Traveler 50 and includes Chattanooga as one of the essential places "that have turned the world's most intelligent cities into travelers' hottest tickets."

Ian MacFarlane, a consultant for National Geographic Channel's Smart Cities program, says each of the cities selected among the smartest in the world have a sense of place.

"A city needs a heart and soul - typically the center, where people congregate for work and leisure," MacFarlane tells the magazine. "Smart cities are well-connected locally and internationally, have a sustainable lifestyle, and are places where people come first."

National Geographic lists Chattanooga in its ranking of smartest cities, praising Chattanooga for is gigabit-per-second Internet service from EPB and its walkable downtown along the riverwalk and other riverfront development.

"Techies call Chattanooga "Gig City" for its lightning-fast Internet," writer George W. Stone said. "But what do locals do when not digitizing? They bike and hike along the revitalized Riverwalk path, part of a $250 million reinvention along the banks of the Tennessee."

San Francisco tops the list and Paducah and Lexington, Ky., are also among the top 50 list.

Read more at National Geographic

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