Columbus 311: A Failure From Start to Finish
After the severe storms on August 8, I attempted to use Columbus 311 to report piles of downed tree limbs left in the tree lawn in our neighborhood. What should have been a simple request turned into an exercise in frustration.
I first tried submitting the request through the Columbus 311 website on an Apple device. I completed the form, but the interface would not allow me to access the button needed to actually submit it. I then downloaded the CBUS 311 app thinking that would solve the problem. It didn’t. I encountered essentially the same issue there—the interface made it impossible to reach the control needed to complete and submit the request.
A city service designed specifically for residents to report problems is of very little use if residents cannot even submit the report. This is basic functionality that should have been caught through even minimal usability testing, particularly on devices as common as iPhones and iPads.
UPDATE — October 1: It has now been nearly eight weeks since the August 8 storms, and piles of downed branches are still sitting in the tree lawns throughout our neighborhood.
After waiting nearly two months, I finally removed my own two piles. They had already been sitting there long enough to kill the grass underneath them.
Multiple neighbors have contacted 311, and the response has essentially been that they’re very busy. I understand that a major storm creates a backlog. But nearly eight weeks later, with debris still sitting untouched throughout the neighborhood, “we’re busy” is no longer an acceptable excuse.
We pay taxes for these basic city services. From an app and website that made it unnecessarily difficult to even submit a request, to the complete lack of follow-through afterward, the Columbus 311 experience has been awful from top to bottom.
Nearly two months later, nothing has changed.
311 is a joke.
I first tried submitting the request through the Columbus 311 website on an Apple device. I completed the form, but the interface would not allow me to access the button needed to actually submit it. I then downloaded the CBUS 311 app thinking that would solve the problem. It didn’t. I encountered essentially the same issue there—the interface made it impossible to reach the control needed to complete and submit the request.
A city service designed specifically for residents to report problems is of very little use if residents cannot even submit the report. This is basic functionality that should have been caught through even minimal usability testing, particularly on devices as common as iPhones and iPads.
UPDATE — October 1: It has now been nearly eight weeks since the August 8 storms, and piles of downed branches are still sitting in the tree lawns throughout our neighborhood.
After waiting nearly two months, I finally removed my own two piles. They had already been sitting there long enough to kill the grass underneath them.
Multiple neighbors have contacted 311, and the response has essentially been that they’re very busy. I understand that a major storm creates a backlog. But nearly eight weeks later, with debris still sitting untouched throughout the neighborhood, “we’re busy” is no longer an acceptable excuse.
We pay taxes for these basic city services. From an app and website that made it unnecessarily difficult to even submit a request, to the complete lack of follow-through afterward, the Columbus 311 experience has been awful from top to bottom.
Nearly two months later, nothing has changed.
311 is a joke.
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Columbus 311: A Stunning Failure of Basic Functionality
This is an astonishing level of incompetence for a basic city service.
I attempted to submit a Columbus 311 request on an iPad using the specific link the City provides for Apple users. I completed the entire form, only to discover that the “Done” button at the bottom is effectively inaccessible. The page has a rubber-band scrolling effect: I can pull the page up far enough to see the Done button, but I have to physically hold the screen in that position. The moment I release it, the page snaps back, and the button cannot be activated.
Thinking this might be an iPad-specific problem, I downloaded the CBUS 311 app on my iPhone and tried again. Same problem. I cannot even submit the request.
So after entering all of the information multiple times, using both the City’s designated Apple-user link and its official app on two different Apple devices, I am still unable to complete a basic 311 request because the interface literally will not allow me to press “Done.”
This is beyond frustrating. Residents pay taxes to fund these services. Being able to successfully submit a simple service request should be the absolute minimum standard. The fact that the City has an Apple-specific link and an iPhone app and neither one can reliably complete the submission process is an extraordinary failure of basic testing and usability.
I attempted to submit a Columbus 311 request on an iPad using the specific link the City provides for Apple users. I completed the entire form, only to discover that the “Done” button at the bottom is effectively inaccessible. The page has a rubber-band scrolling effect: I can pull the page up far enough to see the Done button, but I have to physically hold the screen in that position. The moment I release it, the page snaps back, and the button cannot be activated.
Thinking this might be an iPad-specific problem, I downloaded the CBUS 311 app on my iPhone and tried again. Same problem. I cannot even submit the request.
So after entering all of the information multiple times, using both the City’s designated Apple-user link and its official app on two different Apple devices, I am still unable to complete a basic 311 request because the interface literally will not allow me to press “Done.”
This is beyond frustrating. Residents pay taxes to fund these services. Being able to successfully submit a simple service request should be the absolute minimum standard. The fact that the City has an Apple-specific link and an iPhone app and neither one can reliably complete the submission process is an extraordinary failure of basic testing and usability.
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CBUS 311
This app hasn’t been updated in over a year. I guess I expect this considering the Nimrods that run the city
Totally worthless app
Can't set up an account. Can't reset a password. Can't do a damn thing..just like the corrupt city government that it represents.
Doesn’t load
Never got to actually use this app because it never loads past the photo of the city
