If you have ever meant to report vandalism or broken street lights to City Hall but simply forgot, then you are like a lot of people. Too many responsibilities get in the way, and next thing you know, you are walking by the same broken street light or defaced public bench. Even if you had an iPhone with which to take a photo, where would you send it?
Access to Government
Today, cities across the United States are starting to use current technology to keep government officials on their toes. Americans can now download apps which give them access to City Hall. Instead of getting mad, then forgetting about the pothole that nearly took out his left-front tire, a citizen can photograph the offending hole and send it to local government immediately. This allows the government to triage and do an initial evaluation to measure their priorities.
Getting Results
The result is that problems are solved much more quickly than before. It is typical for an iPhone user to photograph vandalism in the morning before work and see it cleaned up by the time he drives home at 5 p.m. Local government adopted the technology to enable Americans to become more involved and to urge officials to behave responsibly.
Images are applied to tracking software which shows City Hall where a problem is located. A pothole will be fixed or a light replaced within hours. This is the key: the apps are working. Members of local governments act quickly when damage or a code violation is brought to their attention, partly because it is now publicly documented. Just make sure your phone is working – if you can’t take a picture, you can’t report a problem. Get your iphone camera fixed by professionals like iFixYouri.
Bad Behavior
Another way this tool has been used is to report instances of abuse. Citizens might spot a member of Congress:
- Using a government car to go to a baseball game
- Enjoying expensive luncheons on city dime
- Committing fraud (or even abuse, in the case of police)
More than 200 cases of fraud have already been called in by concerned members of the public. With the proliferation of mobile technology in America, this trend is sure to be on the rise. Do you think this technology is going to be more important, going forward?