Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In

311_4.JPG Carrie McLaren and Steve Lambert are working on a public service photo project called "People's 311." They want New Yorkers to submit shots of things like potholes, bike lane hazards, dying trees and broken traffic signs.

People's 311 is a "crowdsourcing" response to the Street Conditions Observation Unit (SCOUT) program, a new team of inspectors dispatched by the Mayor's Office of Operations to drive every city street (in scooters) once per month and report problem conditions to 311. McLaren and Lambert think this is something citizens could help with. They eventually plan to map all photos for a more comprehensive picture of reported problems.

Check the Stay Free! Magazine Blog for details. And for more experiments in crowdsourcing, see Brian Lehrer's SUV count from earlier this month, and, of course, Streetsblog's favorite project, Uncivil Servants.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

There’s Good Science Behind the Human Craving for Livable Streets

It's time to understanding the science of pedestrian-friendly cities. Or, why streets should be designed like gardens.

September 23, 2025

How Trump’s Latest Multimodal Clawbacks Are Different — And How They Could Devastate Communities

The latest attack on multimodal transportation is more brazen and destructive than ever before — and the Trump administration is no longer hiding its disdain for walking and biking projects.

September 22, 2025

Zohran Mamdani On E-Bike Safety: Regulate App Algorithms, Not Workers

The presumptive mayor is joining the war against e-bikes ... on the side of the e-bikes.

September 22, 2025

Monday’s Headlines Wheel and Deal

Why pay $950,000 for a bus when you could pay $450,000?

September 22, 2025

Friday Video: How Car Culture and the Internet Attention Economy Waste Your Time

Our favorite YouTuber breaks down what happens when car culture, hyper-consumerism, and internet brain rot collide — and how to claw our way out.

September 19, 2025

Friday’s Headlines Run Out the Clock

Thousands of unawarded federal transportation grants have been frozen, from reducing truck emissions to reconnecting communities divided by freeways.

September 19, 2025
See all posts