Ann Arbor Launches Open Data Portal

City of Ann Arbor data is now available to the public like never before, in the forms of charts, graphs and maps, at https://data.a2gov.org/. The launch of the new Ann Arbor Open Data Portal is in response to City Council Resolution R-23-331, “Resolution to Improve Data Transparency and Performance Management.”

The city first launched an online data catalog in 2010, making raw data sets available to the public in the spirit of transparency. Its successor, the new Ann Arbor Open Data Portal, adds dozens of maps and dashboards that enable residents to engage with and draw insights from the data without requiring specialized technical skills.

The Ann Arbor Open Data Portal provides a central location for all the varied city data products. Users can search by specific keywords or browse by topic, tag or format. The portal hosts performance indicators and data across a variety of topics, including: rainfall measurements at city-operated rain gauges; drinking water quality; a real-time snowplowing map; progress toward A2ZERO goals; pavement conditions and planned road improvements; traffic crashes; and much more. 

"We're excited for city information and data to be more readily available and easier to use — and understand — than ever before," said city Information Technology Director Joshua Baron. "We hope assembling the city’s many data resources into a single, user-friendly open data portal will help inform the public and foster engagement." The portal uses industry-leading software (CKAN) on the backend — data enthusiasts are encouraged to try out its API (application programming interface) — along with a custom, user-friendly interface. Baron noted residents or anyone curious about city data should visit the portal often, as not only is the data dynamic, but new data sets, maps and dashboards will be added as they become available.

Questions and suggestions are welcomed by using the Ann Arbor Open Data Portal’s feedback button.

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Media Contact: 

Joshua Baron, Information Technology Director, jrbaron@a2gov.org