Major Policies

The 1999 Citizen Hotline: Comprehensive Service and with Foreign-Language Assistance

• Source:Department of Information Technology
• Date:2008/9/10

Foreigners living or traveling in Taipei can enjoy the same convenience as local folk in getting help for any questions or problems they might be encountering. Just dial 1999 and then press 0, and on the line you’ll immediately be able to interact with a highly trained service representative in either English, Japanese, Vietnamese, or Thai.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

The “1999 Citizen Hotline” was set up at the end of 2004, the first such service by a government at any level on the island. Citizens can conveniently get help on any problem relating to municipal services that they might encounter. In 2006 the service was extended to the online world, in keeping with the exponential use of online services by the public. No matter where a person is, he/she can contact the city governmemt or any organization or school coming under its jurisdiction by accessing the relevant web page, which will enable immediate, free Internet telephony access to the hotline. Not only does this help the public resolve problems more conveniently, it also helps citizens save all telephone charges.

In the initial period after the hotline was established, an average of 50,000 calls were handled per month, ranging from straightforward information and consultation inquiries to info about events and activities and on to telephone transfers ; statements, pleadings, reports, and recommendations on legal matters; to help with city outbound-call services and requests for faxing of application documents, and other matters. To ensure the most efficient, effective, and friendly service, the government seeks to grasp and to thereafter best satisfy the needs of the public. The experience of the New York 311 service was looked at for reference, resulting in the 1999 Citizen Hotline Improvement Project in 2007, targeted at upgrading and updating the information system, simplifying and consolidating the serviceprovision flowchart, upgrading of the actual service-site facilities, and enhancement of service personnel quality. The ultimate goal in all this was to create an Integrated Center for City Services that would allow instant access and resolution of city-related matters for the public, by simply dialing 1999.

The ci t y goverment i s not only incorporating the above-listed 16 items, which are the most commonly raised by citizens, into its service system, but has also stipulated time limits for resolution. Citizens who phone in are called back with reports on the handling of their concerns—this must be done within four hours. The 1999 Citizen Hotline is functioning, as hoped and planned, as an easy-access and easy-resolution resource for the full range of city-service matters.

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• Updated: 2010/1/29 11:35:00