Two years in, city declares Improve Detroit app a success

The city of Detroit has been trying to improve the way it handles neighborhood issues, like potholes and fallen tree removal. That's why it created the appropriately named Improve Detroit app. Now two years old, the app has "helped residents address 67,000 neighborhood issues," according to the city. 

The functionality of the app is simple: give a title and description to the issue, take a picture, and add a location. This information is then routed to the appropriate department to resolve. The app can also redirect users to sites for Detroit Water and Sewerage Department, Detroit Police Department, and more. 

The city has been tracking both the number of problems they've addressed and how long it takes to do so. According to numbers from a press release, they've addressed: 

• 8,913 illegal dumping complaints in an average of 5.9 days
• 5,888 potholes in an average of 3.7 days
• 5,412 tree issues in an average of 41 days
• 4,237 abandoned vehicles in an average of 5.1 days
• 3,448 traffic sign issues in an average of 5 days

"This new approach to addressing citizen concerns has really transformed how the City delivers its most basic services to its residents," Mayor Duggan said, in a press release. "I run into people all the time who tell me they reported an issue through Improve Detroit and how well it worked for them."