URBANITE General

According to the Helsinki vision, for the purpose of defining plans data is vital; plenty of which is currently existing but is located in different (virtual) places. The themes for the first  workshop were designed to:

• Firstly, define the data needs considering both current data resources and possible requirements for further collection of data.
• Secondly to map the strategic capacity, effectiveness and availability of resources including tools and cooperation opportunities.
• The third theme which also reflects the aim of the workshop was to better concretize what should be done to develop the mobility system platform taking into account the needs, the expectations and the goals -how to get "real-time picture of traffic situation".

The purpose is to intensify cooperation between key actors, unify information on existing and new traffic data and make it available through a unique access point, and to accelerate the process of data strategy definition by a roadmap for the implementation of the data platform. Series of SoPoLab sessions will help with the modifying and refining the roadmap in accordance with the lessons learned during the project. Meanwhile, URBANITE will support LIDO's long-term goal as a learning agile project composition in order to create an ecosystem that benefits companies and other actors in addition to the City of Helsinki.

All the discussions and points made by participants were grouped into different categories according to the challenges they were addressing. A mind-map was then designed to answer the questions of “what”, “how”, and “why” based on both SoPoLab session results and analysis of interviews. Merging and unifying all the information gained so far, a deeper understanding of needs, expectations and questions was conceived.

 The knowledge gained points out mostly the following arguments:

• Questions, answering to which will reveal and leverage benefits of data e.g.

-----The possibility of processing data and enriching it with other data sources to meet versatile needs of different users.

-----The need to know where a specific data source is placed and what kind of information it contains. Basically, the need for metadata as well as the lessons and learnings obtained throughout research and pilots.

• Issues and challenges regarding data quality e.g.

-----Data portability and availability.

-----Compatibility of data with different tools and research areas.

-----Data confidentiality and handling personal information.

• Co-operations and development of the data ecosystem e.g.

-----Information sharing and cooperation inside organization, among industries, amongst citizens and citizen servants, and so on.

-----Negotiations to take advantage of the data provided by the big players such as Google.

• Systematic requirements from data platforms e.g.

-----Automation to minimize the errors caused by manual work and automation in sharing info.

-----Aggregation and visualisation of data.

-----Supporting decision making and impact analysis of previous projects and pilots.

• Needs regarding data sources and their extension e.g.

-----The need for an evasive knowledge base in three different spectrums:

a.       Timeline-approach: historical data, real-time and current situation data, and forecasts.

b.       Mobility mode-approach: pedestrian data, cyclists’ data, public transportation data, and private vehicles (plus their mobility characteristics, travelling time, destinations, stops and so on).

c.       Map-based approach: the availability of data in different layers of the map i.e., street-wise data vs. zone-specific or district-wise data. 

The session was held on the 28th of January 2021 at 09.00 a.m (EEST) and it last for almost three hours. It was a virtual meeting carried out through Microsoft Teams videoconference service and 18 people attended. Miro virtual board was used as a supporting tool.