Open data pilot goes live
By Graeme McNaughton/The Oshawa Express
The region has launched a new pilot project that will make information more accessible online.
Durham Region’s Open Data site, which was launched in accordance with the province’s open data directive, will provide raw information on various aspects of how the region operates. As part of the pilot project, the website features information on transit, as well as mapping systems.
The data provided, however, will likely not be of use to many people.
“The average person probably won’t use the data,” Don Beaton, the region’s chief information officer, told councillors during a meeting of regional council.
“People can take (the data) and use it in statistics, do analysis or use it in building an application.”
Councillor Amy McQuaid-England of Oshawa said during regional council that while this project is a step in the right direction, there is still a lot of work that the region needs to do in order to be more open to the public.
“It’s important this council realizes our website is not as accessible as it can be. It’s very difficult to get access to information, even though all the information is all there,” she said.
“It’s not that the information isn’t available, in terms of agendas, in terms of reports. It’s just the amount of steps it takes to get that information.”
Joe Neal, a councillor from Clarington, says one thing he’d like to see made available is the very meeting of councillors themselves.
“One of the things I’d like to see sorted out is to either listen or watch a council meeting because right now, that seems to be a big problem. If you’re at home and you want to listen back on a council meeting, you can’t do that,” he said.
“I have to actually come in sometimes and get a disc and play it back.”
Currently, the region’s committee meetings are archives on Durham’s website, while the video for council meetings is stored on the Rogers TV website, which broadcasts the meetings.
The province’s open data directive was announced in November 2015, and called to maximize access to government data, and for any data not exempt for legal, privacy, security, confidentiality or commercially-sensitive reasons to be made available.