This July, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation launched the EOT Developers Page BETA. The EOT Developers page at http://www.mass.gov/eot/developers hosts multi-modal transportation data made available for smart, innovative software developers to build applications that benefit transportation users, travelers, and riders. EOT has engaged these developers, holding developers’ meetings and engaging the community through Twitter and Google Groups, and hopes to expand its data and incorporate more information in real-time. To learn more about what we are doing, check out the following presentation: http://bit.ly/VEXTN
In addition to launching the Developers Page, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation is pleased to invite you to the MassDOT Developers Conference, on November 14th, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, MA. The Conference is free and open to the public. EOT, which becomes MassDOT on November 1, is also announcing the 2009 EOT Developers Challenge, which inspires developers to create both applications and data visualizations, to submit them to EOT, and to release them to the public. The two top submissions will receive a CharlieCard valid for one-year of free travel on the MBTA, in addition to recognition at the Conference.
The Conference and Challenge are a fantastic opportunity to engage in the process of turning this data into an application that has impact in the real-world. It also provides participants a stage to showcase their work.
These initiatives are also a part of Governor Patrick’s Civic Engagement agenda, which seeks to foster creative new ways for citizens to engage in state government. A Boston Globe editorial has labeled the Developers Page “a smart, 21st-century alternative,” and the program was featured in a front-page story in the Boston Metro newspaper.
The Conference and Challenge are modeled on similar efforts in Washington D.C., where the city’s Apps for Democracy program returned 47 iPhone, Facebook and web applications with an estimated value in excess of $2,600,000 to the city. Applications and visualizations may be submitted through November 9th, 2009. Developers and data visualization experts will submit their creations to EOT, where the applications will be judged on the quality of design, usability, and convenience. The two first-place winners in each category will each receive a CharlieCard valid for one year of travel on the MBTA’s rapid-transit and bus system.
The Conference is free and open to the public. It will include plenary sessions featuring speakers from the transportation and technology community, and breakout sessions, where developers can meet to discuss EOT’s data and what applications they are working on. The Conference will also include training sessions for the Regional Transit Authorities, which provide transit services outside of Greater Boston, to help those agencies maintain their data in open and available formats on the Developers Page.
Please email Joshua Robin at joshua.robin [at] eot.state.ma.us with questions or comments.
To RSVP please click here: http://massdotdevconference.eventbrite.com/
Lastly, please follow us on Twitter: @massdotdev
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