Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone announced a 311 non-emergency call service for residents in his annual State of the County speech.
The call service will be for non-emergencies like potholes and general inquiries. Suffolk will become the first suburban county in New York with a 311 system.
Bellone says it was created to take some of the pressure off understaffed 911 call centers in Suffolk.
“311 call centers also improve public safety be reducing the burden on 911 call centers. By offloading tens of thousands of non-emergency calls, our emergency call centers will be better positioned to respond to true emergencies.”
The service will roll out within 30 days and is estimated to cost $560,000. Bellone modeled the service after similar ones in New York City and Baltimore.