3D digital participatory planning in smart and sustainable cities: an evaluation empirical study

Digital participatory planning is gradually overcoming the traditional practice of participation in sustainable and smart developments. This comes as a contribution to improving social sustainability in smart cities. However, in many developing countries, citizens’ participation is still seldom. Henceforth, the introduction of 3D digital participatory planning (3DDPP) needs to be examined and systematically evaluated. This study aims to examine the feasibility of applying 3DDPP in Oman. The study follows an action research approach where a sample of citizens participated in the design of a real governmental project using an interactive 3D digital tool. This was followed by a detailed feasibility evaluation using a set of criteria suggested by the literature. The result revealed that 3DDPP has a high potential to facilitate smooth and successful future applications and improve the participation process in terms of quality, effectiveness, and efficiency. We concluded with recommendations to policymakers to achieve social sustainability during the transition towards smart sustainable cities. The study contributes to social sustainability and participatory planning research with new insights from developing countries where both concepts are still significantly under-studied. The study also contributes a framework for assessing citizens’ readiness for 3DDPP and helps to advance efforts to achieve Oman Vision 2040.