Curb Data Specification Digitally Shares Curb Information With Cities, Delivery Companies

The Open Mobility Foundation (OMF) has released a beta version of their Curb Data Specification (CDS) – a set of application programming interfaces (APIs) for cities, delivery companies, and other stakeholders to digitally share curb information. CxqDS was developed as a free and open standard.

“The Open Mobility Foundation’s goal is to equip public agencies with the tools they need to deliver more public value from urban curb space and meet the evolving needs of residents. Curb space has long been a scarce resource. And, while many cities have made progress in their curb management efforts, technology and data offer new tools to proactively manage curbs and support public spaces that better reflect community priorities like safety, environmental sustainability, and local business development,” said, Angela Giacchetti, Executive Director of the Open Mobility Foundation.

The APIs include are:

  • Curbs API – A standard way for cities to digitally publish curb locations and regulations, which can be shared with the public and with companies using curb space;
  • Events API –  A standard way to transmit real-time and historic commercial events happening at the curb to cities. Event data can be derived from company data feeds, sensors, check-ins, and other city data sources; and
  • Metrics API: A standard way to track curb usage session details and define common calculation methods to measure historic dwell time, occupancy, usage, and other aggregated statistics.

It’s expected that CDS will be useful for municipalities to: digitally share regulations – such as loading zone rules and locations; determine real-time curb status; track and analyze curb usage; respond to curb violations and improve curb enforcement; and optimize curb usage and access to meet policy goals.