DDA suppression of parking space data

[Phillip Farber]

Over the past few weeks independent developers in town implemented a
VoIP service that allow you to call a number and get the number of open
spaces in parking structures based on DDA data. This has the potential
to greatly increase the capacity utilization and convenience of using
existing parking structures and perhaps to obviate the need to build more.

Here's the kicker. The DDA has decided to suppress this free service
for some obviously specious reasons. Unfortunately, it's a common
reaction to the concept that "information wants to be free." I
encountered a similar response to a request to University parking
officials when inquiring about the possibility of open access to their
capacity utilization data.

Here's the great blog entry on the whole sorry story by the developers.

http://www.voiptechchat.com/voip/255/a2dda-blocks-asterisk-parking-data/

This is the number: +1 (734) 272-0909

It used to work. Now it generates an error when you request the data
for a structure.

How sad.

Phil

[Elizabeth Gray Calhoun]

It's also for discussion at arborupdate:

http://arborupdate.com/article/1783/dda-blocks-parking-information-by-phone-service

--Liz

[Jim Rees]

This is an outrageous violation of the public trust. I hope the AA News
picks up this story.

If I were paranoid, I might wonder whether DDA is suppressing this data
because it would demonstrate that there is no need for the new $50 million
parking structure next to the library.

[Elizabeth Gray Calhoun]

Then Jim, maybe you'd be interested in reading this:

http://blog.mlive.com/ann_arbor_business_review/2008/01/ann_arbor_commercial_real_esta.html

"Business Review: Is parking still as acute an issue?

Chaconas: To bring a high-density user, yes.

Aldrich: Who doesn't think Ann Arbor doesn't need more parking downtown?

Grant: I think the parking problem is a perceived problem - but we need
more parking to make the perception go away.

Giraud: The downtown office market is still strong. There have been some
holes filled in the market. When you get to large leases, there's a
serious problem. Finding the square footage is one thing - finding it with
parking is another thing. If you've got a 20,000-square-foot tenant that
wants to be downtown, the number of buildings is one, two or three - and
there's no parking."

[Jim Rees]

I'd be interested in seeing some hard parking data. The kind the DDA has
decided to suppress. People I know and trust say there is a shortage of
parking downtown. I don't drive enough to really know, but I can't remember
ever driving downtown and being unable to park any time in the last 35
years. I'm sure I've never tried to park in the library lot and been unable
to find a space.

I love this quote:

[Milo]

On Mar 13, 8:03 am, Phillip Farber <pfar...@umich.edu> wrote:
> Over the past few weeks independent developers in town implemented a
> VoIP service that allow you to call a number and get the number of open
> spaces in parking structures based on DDA data.

> Here's the kicker.  The DDA has decided to suppress this free service
> for some obviously specious reasons.  

Tyler Erickson created an iPhone app to display the same info, it is
still up and running. You don't need an iPhone to get the data,
here's the link:

http://a2-park.appspot.com/iphone#_home

Milo

[Phillip Farber]

Not sure this data is reliable. For several lots I downloaded the
recent data and the occupancy numbers didn't change by even one vehicle
at any of the checkpoints. For instance, for Maynard:

structure,time, spaces_available, spaces_used

"Maynard",2009-03-13 11:57:29, 0, 797
"Maynard",2009-03-13 16:44:29, 0, 797

Phil

[Milo]

Phil,

You are correct. The DDA has blocked access to parking space
availability data. They have stated that they want to control this
information themselves. Follow the link below for elaboration, I
won't even try to describe the "logic" of this.

Here is a response from Tyler regarding his iPhone App:

>No, the DDA website has been stuck for the past 3 days (at least). My
>app is reporting the invalid data. I have been thinking of writing in
>some logic that check if the numbers haven't changed in the last 10
>minutes, and report a message describing the problem, the DDA's phone
>number, and encouragement to contact the dda to fix the problem.

>I'll forward you an entertaining thread on our discussions with DDA...

http://www.voiptechchat.com/voip/255/a2dda-blocks-asterisk-parking-data/


JB


On Mar 13, 12:49 pm, Phillip Farber <pfar...@umich.edu> wrote:
> Not sure this data is reliable.  ...
> Phil

[Edward Vielmetti]

Phil,

I've been part of the group that has worked on these parking
info applications, which started with simple data loggers that
captured about a year's worth of 20 minute samples and got
extended as more people got involved to multiple independent
VOIP applications, a Blackberry application, an iPhone application,
and interest and a start at some modeling and predictive
efforts to suggest when structures might fill.

It's been great to have a problem that people actually
are interested in, everyone who tries something out
almost always says "wow that's cool", and once you have
complete information about all the structures in your
ear or in your hand parking is never a problem to find.

I've been disappointed by the DDA staff response to
unsolicited innovations. What I think is more important
to note, though, is that the full DDA board has not made
a decision one way or another on what to do, since this particular
issue has not been on their agenda.

The DDA board is a board of political appointees, appointed
by the mayor. I've heard the mayor say that he sometimes
gets calls from people who can't find a place to park in Ann
Arbor, and he's understandably interested (I suspect) in hearing
that there may be a solution to that. I've also expressed my
frustration with the DDA to my city council elected representatives,
and the response has been positive.

Fundamentally this is not a technical problem. As someone
noted, the time it takes to write a message like this one is
about the time it takes to code up a parking info application
once you have the data. It is a political problem of staff not
getting a strong and clear message from their board that open
access to public data is the letter and the spirit of the law of the
land,
and this would be a good chance for you to remind them of
that through your favorite elected official.

Ed

ps. why are the battles so bitter? because the stakes are so low.

On Mar 13, 8:03 am, Phillip Farber <pfar...@umich.edu> wrote:

[Edward Vielmetti]

As a follow up to this, I put together the formal FOIA
request for this, arranged for it to be printed and mailed,
and put a copy of that text here:

http://vielmetti.typepad.com/vacuum/2009/03/records-request-ann-arbor-downtown-development-authority-parking-data.html

I anticipate a prompt reply to this request, as required
by law.

Ed

ps. they paved paradise and put up a parking lot

[Jim Rees]

I wonder if it's possible to FOIA a continuous stream of data?

[Jim Rees]

This story hit the front page of the AA News today. Unfortunately the News,
in its usual incisive manner, completely missed the central point of the
story, which is that this data is produced by a government agency, paid for
by the taxpayers, and legally can not be suppressed.

They also didn't mention my theory about the library parking structure, but
I can't really fault them for that.

[mrt]

So is Dick Cheney running the DDA now?

Actually the iphone app link seems to work for me tonight.
I drove by the ann-ashley structure and the led sign said 249
available spaces.
When I checked the app shortly after the numbers appeared to jibe.
Or am I missing something?

[Fred Posner]

The iPhone app is using a different IP which is no longer being
forbidden. When the phone app (which checks very, very infrequently)
tries to access the parking website, we receive the following error:

"You don't have permission to access /parking__transportation/
available_parking_spots/
on this server."

We could use a proxy or skirt around it, but even then, it's a band-
aid. The DDA stops updating the information at will and blocks and
person at their discretion. I would really like public access to
public information.

[a2karen (Karen Moorhead)]

How do we get the app Fred? Thanks, Karen

[Fred Posner]

It's more of a website... so you just need to point the iphone to:

http://a2-park.appspot.com/

On Mar 15, 4:19 pm, "a2karen (Karen Moorhead)" <a2kmoorh...@gmail.com>
wrote: