Guidance

Local authority transport: data sharing resources

Additional information about open data and where you can find extra guidance and support.

From:
Department for Transport
Published
28 March 2023

Glossary of terms

Anonymised data: anonymised data is data that does not relate to an identified or identifiable individual, or to personal data which has been made anonymous so that the data subject is not or no longer identifiable.

Application programming interface (API): an API is a connection that allows communication between computers or computer programs. A documented API is an API that comes with a manual. The documentation helps developers to understand and use an API.

Data controller: the entity (for example, a person or an organisation) that determines the why and the how for processing personal data. As a local authority you are likely to be a data controller.

Data platform: a database of data sets with extra features. It enables you to manage data sets and release them to users. It also enables users to access them.

Data processor: the entity that actually performs the data processing on the controller’s behalf. Your suppliers are likely to be data processors.

Data protection officer (DPO): under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) some organisations including local councils need to appoint a data protection officer. The DPO is responsible for informing them of their data protection obligations and advising the organisation about them. They are also responsible for monitoring the organisation’s compliance with them.

Data retention period: refers to the set period of time that you store a data set. When a retention period ends you should delete the data. The duration of the retention period you choose should fit business needs and regulations.

Data standard: a specification of the structure of a set of data. It provides guidelines which describe the data.

Data subject: the identified or identifiable living individual that personal data relates to.

Derived data: a data set is described as derived data if it was created using a pre-existing data set. For example, if your data set uses Ordnance Survey (OS) maps as a base layer then it is derived data.

Demand responsive transport: refers to a form of shared private or semi-private transport for individuals and groups. These vehicles alter and adjust their routes on each journey based upon demand. There are typically no fixed routes and no timetabled journeys.

Downstream benefits: refers to the benefits or costs that will ultimately result from decisions made today.

Floating vehicle data (FVD): FVD is data about the location of vehicles or people collected from satellite navigation devices.

Future transport zone (FTZ): as part of a government competition, the government chose 4 regions to be future transport zones. These regions trial new and innovative transport solutions. The 4 regions selected for funding are: Derby and Nottingham, Portsmouth and Southampton, the West Midlands and the West of England Combined Authority.

Geographical information system (GIS) software: GIS software can capture, display and analyse spatial or geographical data.

Hackathon: an event where a large number of people meet to engage in collaborative computer programming. The goal will usually be to produce a functional piece of software or a hardware model by the end of the event.

Interoperability: relates to the ability of a range of systems and organisations to operate together. In the context of open data, interoperability refers to the ability to combine data sets. The use of appropriate data standards helps to maximise interoperability.

Metadata: data that provides information about an associated data file. It helps a machine to understand the data file itself.

Mobility as a Service (MaaS): MaaS is a service which allows users to plan, book and pay for multi-modal journeys.

Micromobility: a term which relates to transport using lightweight vehicles. For example, rental electric bicycles and scooters from a self-service rental scheme.

Open data portal: a data portal is a website that holds data from different sources. An open data portal is open to the public.

Personal data: any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person.

Procurement framework: an arrangement when the buyer has pre-approved suppliers. A framework has pre-arranged terms and processes for a specified time period.

Pseudonymised data: UK GDPR defines pseudonymisation as “…the processing of personal data in such a manner that the personal data can no longer be attributed to a specific data subject without the use of additional information, provided that such additional information is kept separately and is subject to technical and organisational measures to ensure that the personal data are not attributed to an identified or identifiable natural person.”

Red-amber-green (RAG) status: a red-amber-green status indicates how a service is performing or a project is progressing.

Service-level agreements (SLAs): an agreement between a service provider and your local authority, relating to specifics of the service provided. Typically it will relate to the service itself and the level of the service.

Sub-national transport body (STB): STBs are transport governance bodies. STBs provide strategic governance at a larger scale than local transport authorities. STBs are responsible for developing and implementing their transport plan. They are also responsible for coordinating and delivering services in their region. There are currently eight STBs in England that encompass every local authority.

UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR): a legal framework that sets guidelines for the collection and processing of personal information from individuals.

Universities’ transport study group (UTSG): aims to promote the teaching of and research into transport. UTSG is a community to bring together those involved transport activities in higher education in the UK and Ireland.

Urban traffic control (UTC): a system that controls and coordinates traffic signals in a network. An engineer loads traffic signal timing plans onto a central computer. The UTC system automatically implements plans depending upon traffic conditions and time.

Urban traffic management and control (UTMC): UTMC systems link together several computer applications to improve traffic management. UTMC is a development of existing UTC systems. They support numerous devices and data types such as:

  • traffic signals via UTC
  • fault and asset management (integration to existing Remote Monitoring System (RMS) systems)
  • variable message signs
  • car parks and parking guidance systems
  • CCTV
  • National Highways data (NTIS)
  • journey time data
  • traffic counters
  • journey time systems such as ANPR, Bluetooth, wifi
  • incident and event management

The Chartered Institute of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) has published an introduction to UTMC.

Web hosting: the provision of storage and access for a website.

Data ethics

Public awareness of data and examples of its misuse emphasise the need for data ethics at the heart of any data project. It is essential that your data is not used to adversely impact people and society.

Data ethics is the branch of ethics that studies and evaluates moral problems related to data. This includes generation, recording, curation, processing, dissemination, sharing and use. It studies the practices with the potential to adversely impact people and society. Due to the abundance of data and its role in decision making, data ethics is a rapidly growing discipline.

There are many resources to help local authorities identify and manage ethical issues. These resources encourage thinking about potential ethical considerations when working with data. The Government Data Ethics Framework guides data usage in the public sector. The Open Data Institute (ODI) has produced a Data Ethics Canvas that helps to identify potential ethical issues.

Myths and misconceptions

This section is to dispel some of the myths about sharing and opening your transport data.

Myth: Data protection and UK GDPR are preventing me from sharing my data.

Reality: Most local authority transport data sets do not contain personal data. Complying with the Data Protection Act and UK GDPR is not an issue with these data sets. Our guidance on privacy and security discusses the data sets for which data protection and UK GDPR have an impact.

Myth: My local transport data is valuable and should be a significant source of revenue

Reality: Whilst a few local authorities receive a small return for some of their data it is not usually significant.

Some local authorities receive income for traffic count data. This is the exception to the rule and the data is often sold for a value that is lower than the cost of carrying out a traffic survey.

Myth: I cannot share my data unless I buy an expensive data platform

Reality: Many local transport data types can be shared by existing suppliers, for example from UTMC systems. City of York Council developed a prototype solution that was able to share data at relatively low cost and provide immediate benefits. Newer solutions including e-mobility schemes often provide open data by default due to the trend towards cloud hosting and open data.

Open data learning resources

There are many open data resources on the internet.

The Local Government Association (LGA) has produced:

The LGA and the ODI have worked together to provide some resources:

Open data support communities

There are many open data support communities, including:

The Local Data Open Community, which lies within the LGA’s Knowledge Hub. This shares information on publishing and using open data within the public sector, especially local government. This includes standards development and use. It also features a forum for discussion and advice.

The ODI has a global network of local nodes.

The Transport Technology Forum Open Data Group provides information, advice and events about local transport open data.

Published 28 March 2023
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