While the web is disrobing many businesses in the name of transparency, the City of San Francisco is happy to expose itself. A month since the launch of DataSF.org, a public archive of government data, Mayor Gavin Newsom has announced that the site will now showcase applications which manipulate that data to make it more useful and accessible to the city's residents. Inspired by the success of Apple's iTunes App Store and Facebook's open developer platform (60,000 and 350,000 apps respectively), writes Mayor Newsom, San Francisco is encouraging democratic participation by “giving residents the tools to build the kind of government that works for them.”

A number of apps are already online, with the new showcase expected to stimulate many more creations. Among those currently available, EcoFinder helps residents find out where their nearest recycling services are located, while Cabspotting—a project by the Exploratorium interactive science museum—displays a real-time map of cab locations in San Francisco.

It's not the first step the tech-centric Bay Area has made towards ‘Gov 2.0’—in June we reported on their Twitter service for civil complaints. But this latest effort could mark the start of a sea-change in the way governments provide public information services. Don't let your local government miss the boat!

Website: www.datasf.org/showcase
Contact: www.datasf.org/showcase/?page_id=115

Spotted by: Duncan Rickelton

In an effort to defibrillate its tourist industry after the shock of the swine flu outbreak, Mexico City is reaching out by being generous. Under a scheme launched late July, the city's tourism office is offering free medical insurance and tourist assistance worth an estimated USD 30 per person to every tourist that visits the city.

“Of all the world’s largest cities, Mexico City is the first to try this,” said Mayor Marcelo Ebrard at a ceremony unveiling the service. Since average hotel occupancy rates dropped to a record low in April/May of this year, the tourist department has been quick to introduce an incentive for both national and international guests. It's no surprise that "medical assistance in case of influenza AH1N1" heads up the list of services on the official website. Medical assistance for any other ailment, as well as emergency hospital accommodation and dental care are also included in the policies, which are underwritten by insurance provider MAPFRE.

The insurance isn't limited to medical issues; a 24-hour call centre will also provide legal assistance in case of robbery, and will help tourists whose flight is cancelled or delayed. The centre is staffed by attendants who are fluent in English, French, German, Portuguese and Spanish, who will even book tickets for events in the city. Whether or not this initiative will bring back the tourists remains to be seen. But it's an innovative move by Mexico City, tackling a major issue with wide-sweeping generosity.

Website: www.mexicocity.gob.mx/contenido.php?cat=50500⊂=13
Contact: servicios@mexicocity.gob.mx

Spotted by: Murtaza Ali Patel

Regular Springwise readers may remember Vélib‘, the citywide bike-sharing scheme in Paris that we covered back in 2007. Buoyed by the success of that effort, the city is now apparently planning another ambitious initiative—this time involving electric cars.

Paris actually already has a car-sharing scheme in place with some 5,000 members, but it's privately run and uses traditional cars. Autolib', on the other hand—from automobile + liberté—is a large-scale, city-backed effort that will provide only clean, electric vehicles. Planned for launch late next year or in early 2011, Autolib' will place some 4,000 electric cars at 1,400 self-service rental and recharging stations in and around Paris for short-term, temporary use. The USD 14 million initiative will likely be operated as a public-private partnership, according to a BusinessWeek report, with oversight by an intergovernmental council. Drivers will not need to make reservations to use a car through Autolib'. Rather, two- and four-seat cars will be available for rent at stands by simply swiping a card in a reader; users will then be able to return the cars at any stand that's convenient. Prices haven't yet been decided, but they'll likely be in the vicinity of USD 6 to USD 9 per half-hour, with monthly subscription fees of USD 22 to USD 29, BW reported.

French environmentalists are apparently protesting Autolib's potential to encourage driving and worsen urban congestion. Advocates, on the other hand, say it could reduce carbon emissions by 22,000 tons a year while improving congestion, since fewer Parisians will feel the need to own a car. Either way, there's no doubt the city-backed approach will give the effort a prominence that would be difficult to achieve otherwise, and its similarity to Vélib‘ could make gaining acceptance considerably easier. One to watch! (Related: Parking operator launches car-sharing service — Hertz launches global car-sharing service.)

Website: www.paris.fr
Contact: service.presse@paris.fr

Spotted by: Rick Elders

It may have taken a while, but city governments are now rushing to catch up with the technological preferences of their citizens. Just last month we covered San Francisco's recent Twitter initiative, and now Boston is jumping on board with a new iPhone application for filing civic complaints.

Dubbed Citizen Connect, the application will allow residents of the city to snap photos of neighbourhood problems such as potholes, graffiti or abandoned vehicles, and e-mail them directly to City Hall, according to a report on Boston.com. Tapping the iPhone's GPS function, users will easily be able to specify the problem's precise location. And whereas in the past citizens often felt that their complaints "disappeared into a bureaucratic black hole," as Boston.com put it, the new application will give users a tracking number after they file their complaint, allowing them to follow city officials' progress in addressing it. Designed by New Hampshire firm Connected Bits, the app is due to enter a testing phase next week, with some 70 people—primarily City Hall employees and volunteers—trying it out, according to Government Technology. It will be offered as a free download from Apple's iPhone App Store, and is expected to become available in mid- to late August.

Also on board the iPhone train with civic applications are Utah and—no surprise—San Francisco, according to Government Technology. Other governments: what about you...?

Website: www.cityofboston.gov
Contact: www.cityofboston.gov/contact

Spotted by: Boston Globe via Raymond Kollau

We've already written about several city governments' technology-enabled efforts to keep in touch with citizens, including Love Lewisham, Derby Kidz Talk and Neighbourhood Fix-It. Such web-, MMS- and 311-based efforts may have since become more common, but San Francisco is the first city we've seen to accept citizen complaints and reports via Twitter.

Early this month San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom announced that San Francisco residents can now send messages to the city government via Twitter by directing them to @SF311. Customer service representatives are available 24/7, 365 days a year, for help with such matters as the need for street cleaning, graffiti removal, potholes, abandoned vehicles and garbage can maintenance. Users simply sign up to follow SF311, which will automatically result in a reciprocal follow connection. Photos and links to illustrate the subjects of complaint are encouraged, and the city also plans to send updates about planned and unplanned local events using the platform. San Francisco is using Twitter business platform CoTweet to track its Twitter-based conversations, according to TechCrunch.

It's good to see governments catching up with the communication preferences of their citizens. More to follow soon, we have no doubt! ;-)

Website: sftwitter.sfgov.org/twitter
Contact: @SF311

Spotted by: TechCrunch