Contributing to MobilityAPI

June 4, 2026 · View on GitHub

Thank you for considering a contribution to MobilityAPI. This document covers how to set up a development environment, run the tests, and the conventions we follow when filing issues and pull requests.

Development setup

Prerequisites

  • Python 3.10 or later
  • PostgreSQL with the MobilityDB extension installed
  • A working clone of this repository

Install dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt

Configure the database connection

Edit config.json (or set the corresponding environment variables) to point at your local PostgreSQL + MobilityDB instance.

Run the server

chmod +x run.sh
./run.sh

The server listens on localhost:8080 by default.

Running the tests

./run.sh --with-tests

The test runner ingests an AIS dataset before running the integration tests. Expect ~23 minutes on first run if the JSON data file is not yet cached, ~21 seconds on subsequent runs.

Filing issues

Please use the issue templates under .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/:

  • Bug report — for unexpected behaviour, errors, or test failures.
  • Feature request — for new endpoints, OGC-compliance improvements, or integration with other backends.

Include the smallest reproducible example you can. For OGC-conformance issues, please reference the relevant section of the OGC API – Moving Features Standard.

Pull requests

  • Branch from master. Use a descriptive branch name (fix/, feat/, refactor/ prefix is encouraged).
  • Keep PRs focused — one logical change per PR.
  • Use the PR template under .github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md.
  • Verify tests pass locally before opening the PR.
  • Reference any related issues with Fixes #N or Refs #N in the description.

Code style

Python source follows PEP 8. The CI runs ruff check on every PR — please run it locally before pushing:

pip install ruff
ruff check .

Lineage

MobilityAPI builds on the foundation of pg_mfserv, an OGC API – Moving Features prototype authored at ULB in 2024. See AUTHORS.md for the contributor history across both phases of the project.

License

By contributing, you agree that your contributions will be licensed under the project's PostgreSQL License.