<https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/15/kyiv-transport-app-is-transformed-into-life-saving-war-information-tool>
Before the war, it was the official city app to buy tickets for
transport and pay for parking or utility bills in the Ukrainian capital.
Now Kyiv Digital has been transformed into a life-saving tool that warns
of air raids, and directs people to the nearest bomb shelter or garage
with petrol supplies.
With the help of the country’s chief digital transformation officer
(CDTO) – the Kyiv <https://www.theguardian.com/world/kyiv> deputy mayor
Petro Olenych – the app’s focus was changed in just 24 hours as Russia
<https://www.theguardian.com/world/russia> invaded.
It has already issued thousands of warnings and alerts, shared maps of
bomb shelters, disseminated information on how to support the army and
provided links to official sources of information.
According to a spokesperson for CDTO the app now has 1.5 million users
and is one of the top free applications in the Ukrainian app store.
“Kyiv Digital has become the essential tool for warnings and alarms in
the city. The novelties include a map of bomb shelters, map of available
pharmacies and the access of insulin, a map of grocery stores, a map of
points with free water and bread, pet shops, humanitarian headquarters,
and more,” the spokesperson said.
“The app has been around for a while and l found it very useful [before]
because you could pay for parking on it and buy tickets for buses and
trolleybuses,” said Denys Malakhatka, a scientific academic researcher.
“Since the war started, they changed the app. They now send you alerts
about when to take shelter and I also really like the fact that they let
you know when the potential attack has ended,” said Malakhatka.
“I think it’s great that they tell you when it’s over and you can
relax,” he said.
In peacetime the underground train service was used by about 1 million
people a day; now the stations serve as emergency shelters for an
estimated 15,000 Kyiv residents, who bed down on platforms and in
hallways once the city’s curfew begins at 7pm.
The Metro is running on one track every 90 minutes while the opposite
platform has stationed carriages for people to wait, sit or sleep.
As part of the digital war support, the government has also beefed up
wifi access <https://wifi.kyivcity.gov.ua/>across the city, providing
internet links to more than 200 bomb shelters to maintain emergency
information links and allow people to keep in touch with relatives.
“We must adapt our services and we have done. Kyiv and other Ukrainian
cities are working more cohesively and productively than ever. The
reason is obvious. We defend our country, our cities, our residents, our
parents, our children and our future. This is our home so we will fight
to the last,” said Olencyh in a statement.
Google has also rolled out rapid air alert systems for android phones in
Ukraine <https://www.theguardian.com/world/ukraine> at the request of
the Ukrainian government. “This work is supplemental to the country’s
existing air raid alert systems, and based on alerts already being
delivered by the Ukrainian government,” it said on a company blog.
Not everybody appreciates their phone apps’ change of focus to the conflict.
“There are eight to 10 alarms a day – and when I’m sleeping I don’t want
to hear them as well,” said Kyle Kondratiev, a lightning designer-turned
humanitarian volunteer humanitarian.
But for many other Kyivans, the app has become essential, not least
because it includes a map of working petrol stations
<https://www.ukrinform.ua/rubric-kyiv/3425918-u-zastosunku-kiiv-cifrovij-zavilas-mapa-pracuucih-azs.html>.
With public transport severely limited, and many petrol stations closed,
drivers without the app can face long queues or lengthy searches for fuel.
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