Tartu City’s GIS
About this good practice
Issues addressed:
1. Increase the productivity of the city’s asset management to be able to collect, store and exchange information more efficiently
2. Provide access and transparency to all available data sources and applications the city has in their organization
3. Build a co-creating digital environment to support stakeholders, public administration and locals to benefit from spatial datasets
The new GIS solution in Tartu is built on top of the ESRI ArcGIS platform that can be implemented as SaaS (software as a service), on-premises, or as a hybrid solution. This approach has provided the city with a complete set of tools to use and enhance the level of data-based decisions. The concept supports three key elements:
- Networking – user interactions
- Ready to use software/infrastructure solutions
- Data
Since 2016 Tartu has managed to restructure most of its spatial data and produce several new data sources the city’s now using in day-to-day processes. Being able to interact with users, processing real-time data and evaluating patterns have significantly increased the usage of data in public services. Moreover, all tools are accessible with SSO (single-sign-on) which has also improved the general user experience.
The vision was to become more flexible in terms of application development, shifting the focus to service-based technology and increasing API usage.
Resources needed
Tartu uses the Esri Small Local Government Enterprise Agreement that depends on the city population. The solution is flexible and scalable to meet specific needs.
Human resources: at least 1 GIS expert and 1 system administrator is advisable
Evidence of success
GIS is widely used in six departments by more than 300 active users.
Examples that have raised the effectiveness of management and the visibility of public services:
- Tartu City General Plan 2040+ – this significant strategic document in terms of city development was enacted in a fully digital form
- Leisure activities with workout instructions and a 360°-location overview
- Funeral arrangement and grave ownership management e-application (in use in other municipalities as well)
Potential for learning or transfer
Process-orientated ERD models – together with metadata – allow any user to save time on different workflow implementations. In terms of GIS data models, Tartu has set an example for many municipalities in Estonia – for example, the cemetery management solution is also used in Saaremaa and Valga.
Sharing web application templates that users can adjust to their needs without coding saves time and money. Using a somewhat out-of-the-box solution speeds up the time it takes to reach well-integrated and adjustable GIS software. The platform also:
- Provides users with open data not just in machine-readable ways but allowing them to download well-known data formats (shp, Geojson) as well
- Provides co-creation tools and software by bringing different data sources and information to the audience while engaging them to be more active about how their living environment is changing
- Monitoring data by analysing it to find new perspectives for stakeholders and citizens