3-1-1

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For alternate uses, please see 311 (disambiguation).

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with 9-1-1, 9-9-9 and 1-1-2 (Discuss)

The non-emergency telephone number 3-1-1 is a special N-1-1 telephone number in many communities in Canada and the United States that provides quick, easy-to-remember access to non-emergency municipal services or a Citizen Service Center. Dialing this number allows city residents (only in certain cities) to obtain important non-emergency services through a central, an all-purpose phone number quickly and effectively.

3-1-1 is intended in part to divert routine inquiries and non-urgent community concerns from the emergency 9-1-1 number. A promotional website for 3-1-1 in Los Angeles described the distinction as follows: "Burning building? Call 9-1-1. Burning Question? Call 3-1-1."

3-1-1 for Non-emergencies
9-1-1 for Emergencies

1 History
2 Operation
3 Availability
- 3.1 United States
- 3.2 Canada
4 Usage
5 Steps to Implementation 311 Call Center Services
6 External links

[edit] History

Its first use for this purpose was in Baltimore, Maryland, where the service commenced on October 2, 1996. 3-1-1 is intended to connect callers to a call center that can be the same as the 9-1-1 call center, but with 3-1-1 calls assigned a secondary priority, answered only when no 9-1-1 calls are waiting. This system is intended to extend the system such that true emergency callers are answered quickly, without ringing or busy signals.

The CRTC formally reserved the use of 3-1-1 for non-emergency municipal services throughout Canada on 5 November 2004. The first Canadian 3-1-1 service opened in Calgary, Alberta on 18 May 2005.

The 311 code was previously used by some telephone companies for testing purposes. In Alberta, 311 was the ANAC number until April 1, 2005 when this was changed to 958-6111 to make way for the present 3-1-1 service.

In former times, "311" was sometimes used as a fictitious area code in Bell System advertisements depicting telephones; often the phone in the advertisement would bear the specific number "Area Code 311 555-2368."

[edit] Operation

3-1-1 service is generally implemented at the local level, and in some cities it is also used for various municipal calls.

Examples of calls intended for 3-1-1:

illegal burning
suspicious persons
debris in roadway
minor injuries
non-working streetlamps
noise complaints
local government enquiries

[edit] Availability

[edit] United States

3-1-1 is available in several major American cities, including: Akron, Albuquerque, Austin, Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Hartford, Houston, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, New York City, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C. and San Jose.

[edit] Canada

The service is available in the following communities (with starting date):

Calgary, Alberta (18 May 2005)
Gatineau, Quebec (22 June 2005)
Windsor, Ontario (22 August 2005)
Ottawa, Ontario (19 September 2005)
Greater Sudbury, Ontario (12 February 2007)

Other Canadian municipalities are expected to implement 3-1-1 in the near future including Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montreal and Laval.

[edit] Usage

In Baltimore, 3-1-1 has been successful in dramatically reducing the cost of city services, but only in conjunction with that city's CitiStat service. Municipal officers of Baltimore do not recommend implementation of 3-1-1 services without first installing CitiStat. CitiStat is essential infrastructure to record and re-direct the service request information received through the 3-1-1 systems.

In New York City, 3-1-1 is used by city officials as one of several sources of measurement and information about the performance of city services. Its implementation has been successful. On December 20, 2005, the first day of the 2005 New York City transit strike, 3-1-1 received over 240,000 phone calls, setting a new daily record for the city. (Mayor Bloomberg, Press Conference, 21 Dec 2005).

[edit] Steps to Implementation 311 Call Center Services

Set up an effective and complete City services web site.
Include access to other levels of government through this web site.
Use the web site to train call center staffers
Build call center facilities or Virtual Call Center
Implement and open 3-1-1 call center service.

The 3-1-1 call center services only supplement a general on-line accessibility of local government, mainly to the decreasing portion of the population that does not have or cannot use the Web to access services. It is still, of course, a significant portion of the population.

There is still considerable discussion on whether 3-1-1 call center services should be implemented using a standard "bricks and mortar" call center building, or by using a virtual call center (VCC). A virtual call center involves using only a plain old telephone set (POTS) and an ordinary computer to provide the infrastructure needed for a call center worker to work from either home or any office.