Steven Johnson examines how officials in New York and other cities can leverage information collected from public call centers to build better cities.
With over 100 million calls to 311 logged in New York, the city has a rich source of data on problems ranging from potholes to graffiti to noise complaints, writes Johnson. While New York has used this data to rapidly respond to incidents like food-borne illness at restaurants or 2009's Maple Syrup Mystery, Johnson argues that making more 311 data available to the public would allow for further analysis and efficiency in problem solving. Projects like Open311 are already fostering similar innovations in cities like San Francisco and Washington, D.C.
However, there are limits to power of the ‘crowdsourced metropolis,' writes Johnson:
"Startups can build applications far more quickly and cheaply than a public agency can, but the city still needs to think fast enough to ask for them-and to integrate them into the way municipalities run While any enterprising developer can build an app for reporting potholes, even the most well-funded company can't go out and repair them."
FULL STORY: What a Hundred Million Calls to 311 Reveal About New York
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
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California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
How California Transit Agencies are Addressing Rider Harassment
Safety and harassment are commonly cited reasons passengers, particularly women and girls, avoid public transit.
Significant Investments Needed to Protect LA County Residents From Climate Hazards
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Federal Rule Raises Cost for Oil and Gas Extraction on Public Lands
An update to federal regulations raises minimum bonding to limit orphaned wells and ensure cleanup costs are covered — but it still may not be enough to mitigate the damages caused by oil and gas drilling.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
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