Today’s technology allows pinpointed access to weather reports to nearly everyone at the touch of a button, and if all goes well, pinpointed air quality readings could also be available to residents in that same immediate fashion.

As part of Mattapan’s Cummins Highway reconstruction project, several city agencies have combined efforts to deploy 10 new air quality sensors, eight of them along the Cummins route.

“We’re aiming to build an open data dashboard that everyone can look at any time,” said Yo Deshpande, of the Office of New Urban Mechanics. “These are similar to state air quality sensors you can look at any time. However, we hope that with these sensors, you’ll be able to see the air quality right up the block in real time.”

The team of city officials that included Deshpande and members of the Environment and Public Works departments, unveiled the pilot program at the Greater Mattapan Neighborhood Council (GMNC) last week. Because Cummins Highway is a city-owned reconstruction project, and because there are concerns about air quality along the corridor, officials said it was chosen to be the first to try out these new sensors. If it goes well, the monitors could become a standard part of every such road reconstruction project in Boston.

“This is a first for Boston deploying air quality sensors on a project like this,” said Nayeli Rodriguez, also of the Office of New Urban Mechanics. “We do want to do this elsewhere in the city, but we are going to start here and see how it works out.”

Kat Eshel, of the city’s Environment Department, said the sensors are not at the same level as the state air quality sensor on Von Hillern Street in Dorchester, which is deployed for official air quality readings; rather these are mid-grade sensors for use by the city and residents. She also said the technology for air quality sensors has improved rapidly, making high-quality sensing available in a “shoebox size” instrument that runs on solar power with a battery back-up.

The city is working with the company Clarity, which already has worked with communities like Denver in deploying air quality sensors. The data gathered help in planning road projects and providing important data to residents. With that previous experience, they will help Boston avoid early pitfalls, and will provide the Clarity Node S sensor – which detects particulate matter (PM) and Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2).

The pilot program has also been a first for bringing so many departments together in City Hall – including Environment, New Urban Mechanics, Boston Transportation Department, and the Public Works Department, among others.

The city hopes to deploy the sensors in a manner that will help them to plan mitigation measures for roadways, such as green spaces, where levels are high, and other such ideas. For residents, it’s also an opportunity to know how the air is outside at any given moment. Some days, with the proper information, it might be best to stay inside if there is extremely poor air quality.

At the GMNC last week, the idea was embraced wholeheartedly. “We need to measure the pollution from vehicles on Cummins Highway because it is significant,” said Vivian Ortiz.

Others said they would like to see the program expanded to the Blue Hill Avenue reconstruction project if all goes well on Cummins.

“We will evaluate them for other locations like Blue Hill Avenue,” said Eshel.

Right now, the city is looking for input on where the 10 sensors should go. Two of them are deployed already – one for calibration at Von Hillern Street and the other in a nearby park for control readings. The remaining eight will be placed along the corridor using input from the community.

For more information or to suggest a location, residents are urged to e-mail apcc@boston.gov.