7 minute read
Building the Future of Sustainable Government
BY JEREMY GOLDBERG
A strategic approach to mobility provides a blueprint for effective public sector digital transformation.
Technology never exists separate from the past. It exists alongside technologies that are sometimes phased out or replaced, or others persist. We can’t always start from scratch. For example, a century ago, air travel changed everything. But centuries prior, humans imagined it might be possible. Now, our cities and mobility systems are changing. And much like commercial flight, we need to build the systems around technologies that allow us to support, regulate, and enable their operation.
In 2018, the UN Development Program reported about 55% of the global population lived in cities. By 2050, the number will rise to 68%. And as city populations grow, we must support the increased demand. That means improving data capture and analysis and cloud systems that enable the necessary scale. It also means sustainability. Cities are also on the front lines of the fight against climate change, which means they can also be at the center of a green, resilient, and inclusive recovery.
Mobility is at the forefront of addressing many of these problems, And it requires using all the available tools. In my opinion, mobility has four key areas critical to success. They are also central to governments’ broader digital transformation efforts: resident impact, sustainability, digital infrastructure and data, and partnerships. And if we can get these right for mobility, we are putting in place a blueprint that can be applied to other digital transformation efforts.
Resident Impact
It starts with a people-centered approach to how government operates and how partners and ecosystems engage with government to deliver for people. In my time as CIO for New York state, I saw that when a project did not have a strong, positive impact on people, the long-term chances of success went down dramatically. Mobility is a daily challenge in cities. And it has a high impact on everyone, but especially the most vulnerable who rely on public transit for work and recreation.
For example, in 2018, the Metro Vancouver System Transportation Authority developed a proof of concept for a solution to improve departure times. TransLink engaged partner T4G, an applied data company and a member of the Microsoft partner networks, for support. TransLink used a modeling approach running on Azure that produced the most accurate predictions using real-time bus location and road condition data. This worked because accurate bus departure information helps riders, helps people feel more comfortable and confident, and contributes to the overall livability of the region. Using machine learning, the number of riders who had to wait for more than five minutes went from 18% to 4%. So better use of data led directly to a drop in people who had to wait.
Digital Infrastructure & Data
Where are transit organizations headed? Shared digital infrastructure and data platforms or platforms to gather insights from across modes of transit. Residents do not want to be bogged down by which transport options are owned by who. They want to get where they are going. This creates a unified system and helps transportation departments plan for long-term needs, expansion, and energy sustainability. It also allows publicly available real-time data and recommendations to help individuals decide which modes of transportation to use for their needs.
Data from a transit system will help leaders understand the transit and non-transit needs of the population. It will connect people with the public services and private businesses they want and need. And it’ll reduce transmission of disease and infection through touchless payments. And it will drive route optimization, improving the transportation flows in a dense urban environment.
Antwerp, Belgium
Antwerp built an application to manage inter-modal mobility in the city, serving as a baseline for transportation options like directions and mass transit routing. It has an immediate positive impact on residents and visitors and their ability to get around the city.
Dutch Railways
Dutch Railway migrated to Azure to create a platform that enabled data analysis that led to more efficient use of space on their trains, leading to an additional 20,000 person capacity daily.
© MICROSOFT/DUTCH RAILWAYS
Sustainability
Mobility has dominated the discussion on sustainability and energy efficiency, both in the EU and in the U.S. . And it’s only a matter of time before EVs are the norm. That discussion extends to every part of digital infrastructure and other public sector operations. Mobility provides a model for thinking about sustainability that can extend to all operations.
Partnerships
I’ve worked on partnerships in government for a long time. Why do they matter? Well, partnerships help get people the services they need. A problem-solving-focused approach helps align public and private partners and leads to results that generate more support for ongoing efforts. Well-crafted partnerships can help governments move quickly on projects that would take years.
Partnerships that work for the public sector and cities are critical to solving the problem because the problems are so complex, and no single entity or organization can do it all. The keys to partnership success and working with cities are: getting creative, finding ways to engage with top-performing companies outside of the traditional monolithic procurement model; demonstrating success early, and then continuing to build upon that; demonstrating the effectiveness and efficiency of playing well with others; and committing to future-proofing, building systems that can survive or enable future shifts in the way that we move.
As we electrify our vehicle fleet to reduce emissions, we must promote sustainability in our overall grid to ensure that electricity is generated from clean sources. That’s a great way to build upon the sustainability portions of the discussion that we’ve had today.
Partnerships that promote accessibility are also critical. Automated vehicles have a strong potential to help people who have difficulty using other modes of transportation. And partnerships that help drive and enable social equity enable cities to identify existing infrastructure that amplifies inequality and funding to remediate the problem.
When I was working for the City of New York, I led the NYCx challenge program and saw firsthand the power of partnerships. We had Moonshot Challenges, which were citywide challenges that encouraged global entrepreneurs to partner with the city to propose solutions to real-life problems. And we had Co-Lab Challenges, which enabled community members to voice concerns on the neighborhood level and work with entrepreneurs to co-create prototype solutions, apply tests, and grow emerging technologies.
We put out a public call for solutions, and challenge participants responded. For the Moonshots, they proposed technologies with the potential to disrupt the global EV paradigm. And for Co-Lab, they proposed a mix of charging technologies and an adoption plan to maximize the portion of vehicle miles powered by electricity. Ultimately, it worked because this effort was about results-focused problem-solving, and it led to proposals that could have a real impact across NYC.
A few final points related to this overall discussion: Inclusivity and accessibility aren’t optional. Governments need to serve all residents, which means accessibility is a high priority. Using data to identify accessibility challenges helps get to the heart of the problem quickly, whether in an app or helping people navigate the physical environment.
Additionally, we need to look at the world a little differently. The world is easy to navigate, unfortunately for just a certain subset of people because we built it to be that way. Government serves everyone, and that same ease should apply to everyone. Accessibility isn’t something extra. It needs to be, and it should be a baseline. It needs to be done in a way that’s not in addition or after the normal building. It needs to be built in from the beginning—using tech to improve accessibility in the urban environment, the physical environment, the digital environment.
Jeremy Goldberg
Director of Critical Infrastructure, Microsoft
New York, New York
Jeremy Goldberg is the Worldwide Director of Critical Infrastructure at Microsoft. Prior to joining the company, he served as the Interim CIO at the State of New York and the Deputy Secretary for Technology and Innovation. He also served in technology leadership roles in the Mayor’s Offices in New York City, San Francisco, and San Jose, California. In 2020, he was recognized as #2 in City and State New York’s Government Technology 50. He is also a Senior Innovation Fellow in the Harvard Kennedy School’s Ash Center.
