Tomorrow at Union Hall, the City of Cincinnati will host a public engagement event geared towards both developers and the public, aimed at discussing the Transportation Service Providers Aggregation Tool’s request for proposal and what the future app could be. Representatives the City’s Department of Community and Economic Development and Office of Performance and Data Analytics will attend.
The RFP, released in October 2017, is looking to create a tech-enabled resource that connects area transportation systems’ datasets to ease travel for users. That includes info from Uber, Waze, Red Bike, Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority, Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky, and more. It would ultimately allow users to develop “personalized transit optimization through the development of a web-based, fully mobile-friendly tool” based on cost, environmental or health concerns, public transit, among others.
“The creation of this tool allows Cincinnati to continue to lead in smart city innovation,” said City Manager Harry Black in an email to Cincy Inno. “Not only will this allow people to fully personalize their mobility experience, but it helps the City address issues like pedestrian safety, accessibility and connectivity.”
Cities are like companies in that they must innovate or cease to be relevant, and the project at hand will help Cincinnati grow, Black added.
“It’s the first Friday of January 2018. Let’s make it start with a bang, we want people to come geek out with us and come make the city a better place."
“We will continue to embrace the latest technologies and tools to keep us on the cutting edge in terms of improving the customer experience, and making Cincinnati the best managed local government in the nation,” he said.
That’s where Cintrifuse, Union Hall and tomorrow’s event comes in. “The reason that Cintrifuse is involved is we want to make sure our startups know it’s possible to do work with the city, and do things that are outstanding,” said Naashom Marx, director of customer connections at Cintrifuse. “If someone from Tel Aviv wanted to come, we want to promote new ways of doing tech, and we want people to know Cincy is a place that’s open for that business.”
Tomorrow’s meeting will also be an opportunity for startup leaders to mingle and meet each other, Marx added, saying that its often not just one startup that provides a perfect solution.
“If we can get four startups to come together that are awesome and respond to the RFP and make sure there is awareness about the RFP, [that’s a win],” she said.
Black said that the City doesn't have an “ideal” end result in mind for the app. “We have no preconceived notions about what the end product will or should be. We want the best minds and experts giving us their best, innovative thinking.”
Marx added that this is an opportunity for developers and entrepreneurs alike to get involved in a project that is seemingly unparalleled other metros. “There are cities that have done something similar, like Denver,” she said. “Not to be rude to Denver, but I don’t believe they’ve cracked the nut. They have an app that is functional but not really user-friendly; it doesn’t aggregate the data. … In my mind, the city is trailblazing this in wanting to be the best.”
If nothing else, the event is an opportunity to for thought leaders to get their hands dirty. “It’s the first Friday of January 2018,” she said. “Let’s make it start with a bang, we want people to come geek out with us and come make the city a better place."
