Glossary
311
The non-emergency phone and digital service residents use to report issues and request city services, including waste-related requests.
What is 311?
311 is the non-emergency phone and digital service residents use to report issues and request city services, including waste-related requests.
311 explained
Waste dominates 311 volume in many cities: missed pickups, bulky requests, cart issues, and schedule questions flow through it daily. Connected waste operations are rewriting the model, because when the city already knows what happened at every stop, 311 shifts from collecting reports to answering with facts, and self-service tools intercept the routine requests before they become calls at all.
Frequently asked questions
What do residents call 311 about most?
Residents call 311 most about missed pickup reports, bulky item scheduling, cart repairs and exchanges, and collection schedule questions. In many cities waste is the largest single category of 311 contact, which makes waste self-service the fastest lever on total 311 load.
How does fleet data improve 311 response?
Fleet data improves 311 response by giving agents stop-level facts: GPS, timestamps, and photos showing what happened at the address. A missed pickup report becomes a lookup rather than an investigation, and unjustified go-back requests get declined with evidence instead of argued.
How do cities reduce 311 call volume?
Cities reduce 311 call volume by intercepting requests before they become calls: online bulky booking, digital calendars answering schedule questions, and item lookup handling disposal questions. Cities report meaningful call reductions as residents adopt these direct channels, freeing 311 capacity for complex issues.