Maps

Recycling points, libraries, schools, parks, public transport and ward boundaries are just some of the services shown on the maps. The map service was developed as part of the council’s e-government strategy to provide electronic access to geographical information. It can be accessed from links like the one above from many pages on this website, as well as from the home page.

Why was the service developed?

The Medway map service is based on the GIS intranet, GISMO, which was developed in 2000 as part of the council’s GIS strategy. GISMO gives officers and members access to map information without the need for installing stand-alone GIS software. As part of the e-government strategy, it was decided in 2001 to expand GISMO to the internet to give the public access to some of the rich geographic information sources collated and administered in Medway Council.

What were the main goals?

The objectives for the development of an internet map service were to:

• provide user friendly access to map information,
• provide links from Medway web pages to location maps,
• keep administration of geographic information within the council to a minimum,
• use the existing GIS intranet infrastructure to reduce development costs but to alter it where necessary,
• promote the map service as widely as possible and to integrate it with existing and planned IT systems,
• use the currently compiled street and land and property gazetteer for geographical searches.

What does the map service offer?

The mapping tool locates Medway in the wider context of the south-east, acting as a gateway to show geographic information for the region. From the overview map, the user can zoom into street level information showing Ordnance Survey maps at varying scales as background maps. Aerial photos of Medway can also be studied. Various user groups within Medway were consulted to determine the information shown on the maps. The map layers selected were combined into themes to facilitate access to the information. The themes include:

• administrative areas,
• electoral boundaries,
• libraries,
• education,
• parks and open spaces,
• leisure and visitor attractions,
• recycling and refuse,
• streets and footpaths,
• public transport,
• cycling.

These themes will be expanded, depending on user requirements, to include, for example, regeneration sites.

A range of navigation tools allows the user to display their desired map location at the most appropriate scale. Alternatively, searches by address and grid co-ordinates are possible. Address searches use the land and property gazetteer. A special search facility called "take me to" directs the user to key localities within Medway such as town centres, council offices etc.

Various GIS tools can be selected which include:

• selecting map layers within a theme,
• legend display,
• querying individual map items to determine the name and attributes of the service,
• searching for items within pre-determined buffers,
• printing, including watermarks and choice of title,
• links to help files that explain how to use the service.

Some technical issues

The expansion of the GIS intranet to the internet required moving the existing GIS intranet server outside the firewall and the creation of a separate virtual website to allow for external access to the map service. The GIS intranet and internet uses Cadcorp Active Server Components, which provide a seamless link to Cadcorp’s spatial information systems used throughout the council as desktop GIS. This allows the convenient use of map data for internal as well as external access.

As part of the map service development, all the attribute information of the map datasets had to be converted to fit within a corporate standardised template to facilitate automated querying. All map data are accessed from a central map server. Searches by address and service type are conducted via an SQL server.

What are the benefits?

The extension of GISMO to the internet gives citizens the benefits already experienced by officers and members using GISMO, which include:

• the sharing of map based information available within the council with the local community and beyond,
• the ability to locate the nearest council facility and service,
• the ability of staff in the contact centre to locate services according to the specific needs of callers,
• access to map information to meet the needs of electronic service delivery.

Using the same application for the intranet and internet provides several cost benefits, which include:

• server maintenance is already covered by a service level agreement,
• skills for modifying and maintaining the application exist in-house,
• the GIS intranet software licence can be used by the internet without extra cost,
• central administration of geographic information for both applications reduces duplication and therefore information management cost.

And in the future…

The Medway Map service provides a basic mapping tool, which can be extended to meet future customer requests. Links to maps can be easily embedded into any of Medway Council’s web pages. The map service can be linked and integrated into future system developments, including the customer relationship management system, the planning application system and an asset management system. As part of the community safety partnership, plans are under way to provide a secure internet link for police, the council and other partners to provide access to mapped crime audit information.

Use of the Medway Map service is being promoted within Medway’s primary schools through the development of map reading and IT skills exercises for Key stages 1 and 2.

Finally, since the map service locates Medway in the wider context of the south-east, it can serve as a regional gateway for map information. This could include, for example, mapping regeneration areas within the Thames Gateway or environmental constraints within the Medway Estuary and the River Swale.

After the successful implementation of the web mapping service, the potential for expanding applications and use are limited only by the capacity of the server infrastructure and the administration and maintenance of the geographic information.

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