A special feature article contribution from Accela - If you have ever gone on a road trip and used a GPS navigation device or planned your route the old fashioned way-using a web mapping application, of course-you may have noticed how these technologies can display service providers along your route such as food, fuel and lodging. 

 Some Web mapping applications allow users to add content too, such as sketching geometry of a trail you hiked on the map to share with friends.  Bing Maps has many "map apps" such as Twitter Map where users can tweet and plot their location on the map, (which has raised some safety concerns by parents actually).  There are iPhone apps that provide users with location based services that locate public restrooms, (Have2P or Bathroom Finder), and users can rate them or update data such as whether they have baby changing tables or cleanliness, and even let users add new locations.   

It is this kind of democratization of data that is sparking interest in the GIS community-ESRI published an ArcNews article about user-generated content in a Winter 2009/2010.  The possibility of creating a database of map features through socially aggregated content or distributed editing could offer tangible benefits to the GIS publisher as well as the consumer.    There are many different levels to democratized data that can be explored.  A citizen reporting an issue at a location, such as graffiti at a landmark by point-and-clicking on a map, or submitting a geotagged photo is one method; a public works field worker capturing the locations of assets while performing maintenance or repair; or a citizen drawing a scenic hiking trail on a map and commenting on the blooming wild flowers are all great examples that show how a local government agency or the public can benefit.  One exciting concept is a sort of geographic white-boarding-sketching on a map for collaborative purposes or running analysis before getting too far into the project.  Imagine a developer evaluating two project sites sketching in a draft plan on the map to analyze traffic impact or soil erosion of each property before applying for a permit.

Another concept is letting citizens click on a map in Accela Citizen Access for example to report potholes in the roadway, or selecting a street light on a map of their neighborhood to report the lamp is out.   Sharing Web maps to the public for use in identifying a location or particular asset, such as a street light outage, could reduce the time it takes to repair it-the agency knows the exact asset, and can review the maintenance history.  But consider socially aggregated data, allowing citizens to create GIS features such as sketching trails or locations of migratory bird sightings.  It may seem more of a community outreach usage, but it could assist local governments provide a higher level of service to their constituents. 

Internal democratization of data creation by disseminating GIS editing tasks across the organization is the first step.  In other words, have various departments in the agency create GIS features for their areas of expertise.  This can quickly add to the inventory for tracking and scheduling maintenance, while alleviating the burden of data collection from a single GIS editor.  If the parks department captures GPS coordinates as tree point features on the map during the tree-trimming work order process, the asset inventory spatial database will rapidly grow.  It will also provide the agency with information for analysis and planning, such as which trees in an area need trimming.  Mashup the migratory bird sightings public access layer and the agency can better plan when to trim certain trees or which ones to avoid because of the presence of nests.   Another use case is overlay the potholes public access layer with the capital improvement plan and completed work orders layers to illustrate that work is being done according to plan and need.

At Accela Automation 7.0.5, agency users will be able to create assets and their GIS features through the Accela GIS map viewer (either in Accela Automation or Accela Mobile Office) into the geodatabase via ArcGIS Server.  Transparency will occur when an agency exposes the locations of requests for service alongside a layer showing the locations of work orders completed in Accela Asset Management on a map, citizens can see progress or neglect, which in turn heightens awareness and may prompt action.  In an era of tweeting, yelping and social networking, aggregating data collection and GIS editing, along with giving citizens the tools to report issues, supply information, and openly communicate about what's going on  can only make for better communities.  I am curious about how current Accela customers feel about this concept. 

This article was originally published April 15, 2010 on the Accela blog. About the author... Brian Wienke, Product Manager at Accela, provides strategic management of the features and functionality of the Accela GIS and
forthcoming Accela Mobile Office product lines, ensuring these solutions are optimally suited to customer needs.