In our latest news roundup, we take a look at Fortune's article on how developers and nonprofits are looking to make systems more accessible using data.
In How Tech is Making African Transit more Uber-like, David Z. Morris examines how nonprofits and developers are compiling data to make transport systems more accountable and accessible in Africa. In an area where formal systems just can’t keep up, informal systems – with often inconsistent routes and timetables – fill the void. These informal systems are far from ideal, but with mapping technology and mobile devices, these systems can be upgraded.
Development design firm Groupshot, along with researchers from the University of Nairobi, MIT, and Columbia run the Digital Matatus Project, have compiled this information into a database, which they provide to local app developers.
A local startup has used this information to build an official Transport for Cape Town app, which not only provides better routing, but also gathers data and feedback from the riders, which feeds into plans for new routes and road construction.
Read the original article on Fortune.