Did you nearly get into a traffic accident because of malfunctioning traffic lights, or the lack of proper pedestrian crossing? You now have an easy way to tell the authorities about it.
We are happy to announce the launch of iOpenCity Project in Fort Bonifacio. iOpencity is a web application that enables members of the public to contribute to better road safety.
By signing into www.TheFortCity.com/iOpencity, you can report road safety concerns with text and image, and we will send it to the relevant authorities.
You can see your reports, as well as reports made by others, on an interactive map, so that you know what road safety concerns exist. Hopefully, it can help the authorities identify problems and fix them. The public can certainly benefit from the knowledge about dangerous spots in the area.
The web app is built by us, not by the authorities, but the authorities can reply to each report, if they choose to, either by email or through a dashboard provided by iOpenCity. If the authorities use the iOpenCity dashboard, then the status of the report can be updated.
The web app is not for reporting emergencies. Emergency numbers like 911 should be used to get help in emergency.
Above: a video that shows you how to make a report.
What types of concerns can I report?
We have grouped road safety concerns into three categories, (i) pedestrian safety, (ii) vehicular safety, and (iii) safety of cyclists. If, based on your observation or personal experience, you think a street is too busy to be crossed by pedestrians without aid, for example, you can make a report under the category of ‘Pedestrian safety’.
Where does this web app cover?
The web app currently covers Bonifacio Global City and McKinley Hill. If we get sufficient funding, we can expand it to cover any place on Earth.
Where will the reports be sent?
Each report will be sent to the relevant authority. If the location of the concern is in Bonifacio Global City, it will be sent to Bonifacio Estate Services Corporation, the company responsible for the estate management of Bonifacio Global City. If it is located in McKinley Hill, it will be sent to McKinley Hill Estate Management Office.
We are aware that, within BGC, some roads are managed by other authorities, such as Forbestown Road which is managed by Megaworld Corporation, not BESC. We will add the relevant email address to our system once it is available.
Why are the reports not sent to the police or fire department?
This web app is not for reporting emergency cases, but for road safety concerns that can be rectified, if needed, by traffic management or facilities.
What is the use if the authorities are not required to take action?
Letting the authorities know about an issue is the first step in helping them take action. The system enables individuals to provide information to the authorities easily, so authorities can see not only that a problem exists, but also whether it is a concern expressed by a few or a lot of people. They can then hopefully use the information to make better decisions. In addition, the information is available to the public, and thus it also alerts other people to the issues.
My concern is already reported by another person. Anything else I can do?
You can click the ‘Agree’ button (thumb-up icon) below the report to show that you share the same concern. That way, it serves to give support to the concern, and it may give given higher priority by the authorities.
Why did you make this web app?
We often receive reports about road safety issues in our social messenging channels and social media. Often, it is venting and ranting about something that upset people, but once in a while, there are good information to warn others about dangers, or suggestions that the authorities should hear about. We do not want such information to go to waste.
What else can the web app do?
Not only can you make a report, see all reports on the map, you can also see the statistics and status of the reports.
It can be expanded to include other cities, in the Philippines or any country.
We can add other categories of issues that can be reported via this web app, e.g. garbage black spots.
We can add, edit and change the authorities for each category of issues.
Right now, authorities are informed by email. They can reply by using the dashboard provided by us.
The web app can actually send out notices to authorities by SMS, but that will involve extra costs.
Interested to have this web app in your city? Send us an email at admin@iopenhub.com.
