#5098. Squeaky wheels: Missing data, disability, and power in the smart city

July 2026publication date
Proposal available till 17-05-2025
4 total number of authors per manuscript0 $

The title of the journal is available only for the authors who have already paid for
Journal’s subject area:
Communication;
Library and Information Sciences;
Computer Science Applications;
Information Systems;
Information Systems and Management;
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Abstract:
Data about the accessibility of municipalities is infrastructure in the smart city. In this paper we focus on features identified by people with disabilities as promoting or hindering safe pedestrian travel. We use a regionally stratified sample of 178 cities. The municipalities were scored on two factors: their open data practices (or lack thereof), and the degree to which they cataloged the environmental features that persons with disabilities deemed critical for safe movement through urban spaces. This data gap has consequences both politically and materially as they would allow for safe route planning. We find that reading these data formats and collection patterns from the perspective of critical disability studies—particularly those whose work disrupts notions of “normal” —helps answer questions about potential benefits and harms of data practices. This lens has the potential to promote analysis that is as disruptive to injustices as it is practical.
Keywords:
data ethics; disability; infrastructure; Missing data; sociotechnical imaginary

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