A free crowdsourcing app that can help you find essential supplies like eggs and paper towels during the coronavirus pandemic has been downloaded about 30,000 times in the last 3 weeks.
The app is called OurStreets, and its original goal was to help people report things like cars parked in bike lanes or scooters blocking sidewalks.
Then came the COVID-19 crisis.
“We knew we had a platform that could help people and we were able to repurpose it to help people find essential supplies,” OurStreets co-founder and CEO Mark Sussman told WTOP.
During the last week of March, the app rolled out a “supplies” feature where you can search for or report finding certain categories of items. And since the rollout, the number of categories has been expanded to just shy of 15.
“For a long time, people were asking for flour and paper towels and sanitizing wipes. We didn’t have those categories when we first launched. We added those last weekend. They’ve already gotten a ton of traction in terms of reports,” said Sussman.
Push notifications are being used to remind users to share what they find, after they shop.
“We’re hoping to improve the user experience a little bit that will nudge people to contribute more instead of just kind of using the app as a reference. Because the more people that use the app and actually contribute, the more useful it is for everybody,” Sussman said. “We’re constantly making improvements to make the experience faster and easier.”
They’re also working to get more vendors — such as convenience stores, grocery stores and restaurants — to update the app so people will know what supplies are in stock where.
Chef Jose Andres has launched neighborhood bodegas at some of his area restaurants, offering everything from fresh vegetables to paper towels.
Sussman said he spoke Thursday with the managing director of Andres’ restaurant group, in hopes that they would contribute to the app.
About half of the app’s users are in the D.C. metro area, with most of the reports coming from the District and Arlington, said Sussman.
A newspaper ran a story about the app in Fredericksburg, and usage took off there. The app also became popular in Cleveland. After the mayors of Pittsburgh and San Jose tweeted about the app, usage spiked in their respective cities as well.
