The Revolutionary Community
From Revolution to Renaissance
Theme of the
2016 Intelligent
Community Awards
Go to the App Store on the iPhone or Android and search for MyColumbus. DownloadÂing this app (rated 3.5 out of 5 by users as of June 2012) will put the City of Columbus into the palm of your hand.
MyColumbus started out as a student project at Ohio State University. Students worked with the IT department of the city to identify publicly-accessible databases that could provide the most up-to-date information on city services, location of facilities and schedules of public events. They then built an app to access the data and turn it into easy-to-understand information.
Columbus, Ohio, USA
From Students to City
The city’s IT department was so impressed with the result that, with the students’ permission, it hired a software company to expand the app and put a professional gloss on it. Since its introduction, it has been downloaded more than 20,000 times. The resulting MyColumbus provides:
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MyNeighborhood (location-based mapping and information about community resources, refuse collection and health inspections)
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GetActive (links to events, bike and trail maps and healthy lifestyle tips)
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GreenSpot (with information on sustainability)
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311 (where residents can log service and inforÂmation requests)
Service requests submitted via MyColumbus are resolved 3.3 times faster, on average, than telephone requests.
Why? Because users can submit photos and GPS coordinates with their service requests, which helps maintenance workers show up with the right tools and materials to get the job done.
Rich Data, Mobile Plan
MyColumbus is so effective because of the rich data that Columbus’s IT department makes available to it. The city’s geographical information system (GIS) has hundreds of layers and supports applications including a Utility Dashboard, Capital Improvements PlanÂning, Fire Hydrants Inspection/Maintenance, and that all-important function in snowy southern Ohio, Snow Removal. An online system called Accela has automated the permit, asset management and licensing functions for property development. The data derived from databases, sensors and GPS flows through to operations managers, planners, businesses and citizens in a never-ending stream.
Many cities the size of Columbus have mobile apps. What is distinctive about MyColumbus is that it is the public face of a comprehensive plan. It includes hundreds of Wi-Fi connected laptops issued to police cruisers and public utility field staff, more than 700 smart phones put in the hands of city management, and 100 tablets for the health department and members of City Council. The city’s business, particularly for personnel interacting with the public, is done online from wherever staff happen to be.
By making the city more efficient and accountable, ICT contributes something excitÂing and new to the quality of life in Columbus, helping to differentiate it from other midsize cities. And by putting information literally into the citizen’s hand, MyColumbus is revolutionizing the relationship of people and organizations to the city they live and work in.
View a 2014 Prezi presentation on Columbus's mobile strategy.