What is the difference between 311 and 911?

911 is for emergencies happening right now, like a fire, a crash with injuries, or someone in danger. 311 handles non-emergency city services: potholes, dead streetlights, missed trash pickup, and illegal dumping.

What can I report to 311?

Anything that is the city's job to fix. Potholes, streetlights out, missed garbage collection, illegally dumped furniture, graffiti, broken sidewalks, downed stop signs, and water bubbling up through the pavement.

What do I do if my city does not have 311?

Contact the public works department directly through its phone line or web form. It is the same request system with a less memorable number, and it routes to the same crews.

What 311 is and what it can actually do for you

911 is for emergencies. 311 is for the pothole, the dead streetlight, and the couch on the curb. Most people never use it.

There is usually a number for the pothole. A lot of people just don't know what it is, so they complain about it and move on.

In most large U.S. cities, 311 is the phone line, website, or app for problems that are the city's responsibility but are not emergencies. A streetlight is out. Trash was missed. Someone dumped a mattress on the curb. There is graffiti, a broken sidewalk, a knocked-down stop sign, water coming up through the street, or a tree limb blocking a road. If the city needs to send someone out, 311 is usually where you start.

911 is for emergencies: a fire, a serious crash, someone in danger.

How to make a request that gets done

Use the app or website if your city offers one. Most large cities do. You can usually attach a photo, mark the exact location, and get a case number after you submit the request. Save that number. It is what you use to check the status or follow up later.

Be as specific as you can about the location. "Pothole on Main Street" is not very useful. "Pothole in the right northbound lane of Main Street, just past the Elm Street traffic light, about two feet wide" gives the crew enough information to find it quickly.

Keep the description simple. The person reviewing the request is trying to turn it into a work order. "Pothole, about two feet wide" is more useful than a paragraph about how long it has been there or how frustrating it is.

What 311 won't help with

Some problems are outside the city's responsibility. A junk car on private property, a fence dispute, or a landlord who will not repair the heat may need to go through code enforcement, a housing agency, or another department. 311 can often point you in the right direction, but it may not handle the complaint itself.

State highways are another common exception. If the pothole is on a state route, the state transportation department may be responsible instead of the city. Power lines and gas leaks generally go to the utility company, while a downed power line or other immediate danger should be reported to 911.

If your city does not have 311, look for the public works department's phone number or online service-request form. It is usually the same process, just without the easy-to-remember number.

A clear location, a photo if you have one, and the case number after you file. That's usually all it takes to give the city something it can act on.