Citizens Connect A Success, According to Boston Officials

From graffiti to potholes to broken street lights, with more than 20 percent of city service requests now being reported through Boston's Citizens Connect, Boston's Chief Information Officer Bill Oates deemed the mobile app a success.

"Citizens Connect opened the door to the city that showed us what we can do with technology, and in very innovative ways," he said in an interview with Techtarget.com.

The concept of allowing residents to communicate with local government via their smart phones is now being integrated in many different departments.

"So what we did with Citizens Connect, in connecting [residents] with their basic services, we now do in lots of places: in the education space, in the administration and finance space, in public works, public safety [spaces]. It has been really fun to watch this new culture of innovation take hold in the city."

And Oates has plans to keep making it better. 

"We had an overwhelmingly positive response to this around the city," he said. "We first did it in 2009. We are now on our third iteration of the project, and it has become an essential piece to how people connect to the city."

Local Reaction
Although South End resident John McLachlan says he uses the app quite often, the results can often be a mixed bag.

"Things like potholes and clogged storm drains tend to get fixed quickly, and you usually hear back," he said. "ISD calls (snow, garbage) there's no feedback, so you don't know if a ticket was ever issued."

McLaughlan said he reported some dead trees at the intersection of Dwight St. and Shawmut Ave. on July 4, and finally received an answer on Aug. 15. However, the Parks and Recreation Department noted it could take 12-18 months to actually remove the trees. 

"As much as I love CX, I think the downside comes from the reports being sent to the respective departments - which handle them at their own pace," he said. "I reported the pothole and the next day DPW was there fixing it.  We can see here, six weeks for Parks/The City Arborist to head over and observe that a tree is actually dead."

To download the Citizens Connect App, visit here.