The City of Toronto's website has been named one of the best municipal websites in the world, according to the Digital Governance in Municipalities Worldwide report released yesterday.
The City of Toronto's website ranked first in content and second overall behind Seoul, South Korea's municipal website. Toronto improved from tenth place to second in the 2009 report for digital governance. It was the third most usable municipal website in 2011, but did not make the top 10 cut in privacy and security or social engagement.
The average score for digital governance in municipalities throughout the world is 33.76. In 2011, Toronto's score was 64.31. Toronto is now the top ranked city website in North America, switching places with New York City who dropped to ninth.
"The ranking reflects Toronto’s efforts to improve its e-governance, particularly in content, usability, and services," the report says.
"For usability and services, it provides a consistent navigation bar system, font color, and formatting. Clear forms and advanced search tools have made it easier to use; related information online helps residents pay taxes, tickets, and utilities; and guidance is available for users to apply for permits and licenses. Additionally, users can submit their feedback or complaints by email or phone to further improve the performance of government. These improvements make the usability and services areas of Toronto’s website more convenient and comprehensive."
The report is a collaboration between the EGovernance Institute at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey Campus at Newark and the Department of Political Science, Kent State University.
Read the full report
here.
Original source: Digital Governance report