Taking a closer look at notable city data
*

By Mayor Joseph Curtatone

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries and letters to the Editor of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

9,165: That’s the number of votes cast so far during early voting here at City Hall through Monday. By the end of early voting on Friday, we expect that number to increase significantly because hours run later this week. All told, we’re on track for about 25% of all votes to be cast via early voting, and so far the feedback is good. We’ve done our best to streamline the process, and despite the high numbers, lines have been very short. We’ve also got “I voted early” stickers if you need that motivation to come out and avoid the Election Day lines.

Next up, here at City Hall, we’ll be looking at data on how early voting improved the wait on Election Day, November 8. We strive every election to continue to decrease wait times, but also to increase turnout. Let us know if you have feedback. For early voting info and hours, visit www.somervillema.gov/earlyvoting or call 311.

17 percent: That’s how much crime has decreased over the past decade in the city between fiscal year 2006 and fiscal year 2016. Many factors have contributed to that decline, and another number sheds some light on one of them: 3,500. That’s the number of citizen outreach contacts our Somerville Police Officers have conducted through September of this year.

Citizen contacts are positive interactions when our officers go out into the community to check in with and talk with residents and business owners to get to know the people they are sworn to serve and learn about their concerns—and lives.

As part of the force’s emphasis on community policing, these daily and regular contacts form a critical connection. They help our officers prevent problems and solve crimes before they escalate to greater problems. Chief David Fallon believes strongly in this approach and the stats back him up. I’m honored to have such dedicated cops on the beat.

609,565: That’s how many metric tons of carbon our city as a whole emitted in 2014, the year we first measured our yearly emissions. Now that we have this Green House Gas Inventory information, we are getting to work on a plan to reduce our contribution to climate change by becoming carbon neutral by 2050. It’s an ambitious goal, but if we don’t set it, we will never get there. The City itself is taking numerous actions to reduce our carbon footprint, and community members can do their part too.

Roughly 30 percent of the community’s carbon emissions come from home energy use. One way to cut down on this form of personal energy use is to install solar panels on your roof (and, yes, Somerville gets enough sun to make solar worth it on many homes despite all the snow). Right now the City is running a bulk buying program to make it easier and more affordable for you to go solar.

Our Solarize Somerville program offers up to a 20 percent discount on the cost of going solar if you have your home evaluated by Nov. 23 and then sign up for solar by Dec. 16. Solar panels can both reduce your electricity costs and your personal contribution to those 609,565 tons of carbon.  For more information on Solarize Somerville, and more on our Green House Gas inventory, visit www.somervilllema.gov/sustainaville.

30 percent: That’s a number that makes a strong argument using the Dutch Reach. Let me explain. First, let’s talk about dooring. Dooring is when a car door is opened into traffic and strikes a cyclist. Thirty percent is the portion of all injuries to Boston area bike couriers caused by dooring (or by their avoidance of car doors) reported in a 2002 study by the Harvard School of Public Health. More recent studies continue to show similar amounts.

Some dooring injuries are minor. Others are serious or even fatal. Urban car drivers can help decrease the risk to cyclists by making it a policy to look before opening their doors after parking. It’s also important to look when exiting from a cab or Über into traffic. Using the Dutch Reach can help you remember to do so. Named in honor of a move used in Holland, where cycling is a popular form of transit, the Dutch Reach is simple. You just open the car door with your arm that is farthest from the door.

So, for example, if you are driving, you open the door with your right arm as you exit your vehicle. If you are on the passenger side, you open the door with your left arm. Reaching this way forces you to turn your head, so you are more likely to look back and spot a cyclist. We’ll be promoting this more along with other safety efforts in the spring. But feel free to start now. Cycling is becoming much more of a year-round activity around here these days.

Data-based decision making is at the core of how the City of Somerville develops policy and sets priorities. Every day we check the latest 311 stats, and throughout the week we meet for in-depth review of departmental data and city trends. The monthly Data Download column shares some of the data we’ve been reviewing recently. To see more Somerville Data, visit the online Somerville Data Farm at http://www.somervillema.gov/datafarm/.