NYC Data Mine is part of a national trend by state and local government to provide access to sets of data maintained by government departments to allow citizens to access and “mashup” data and for developers to build applications which harness the data.
The City of New York Data Mine increases the accessibility of public data generated by the various New York City agencies. As part of an initiative to improve the accessibility, transparency, and accountability of City government, this catalog supplies access to a repository of government-produced, machine-readable data sets.
The data sets are available in a variety of machine-readable formats and are refreshed when new data becomes available. Data is presented by category or by City agency. Descriptions of the data, the collection method, and other contextual material, called metadata, make the data sets easier to understand and use.
Anyone can use these data sets to participate in and improve government by conducting research and analysis or creating applications, thereby gaining a better understanding of the services provided by City agencies and improving the lives of citizens and the way in which government serves them. Use of these data sets and how they are generated can be better understood by reading the Terms of Use.
We have written about this sort of thing before:
Open Letter to City Hall: How About Crime Mapping Software for the New Rochelle Police Department?
We have even created our own mashup as a demo:
Interactive Map of Level 3 Sex Offenders in New Rochelle