Members of the city council had previously criticized the city government for treating people like “suckers” — citizens had to pay at least NT$10 per minute to make the “1999” calls.

The city complied with the opinions and made the number toll-free. According to Mayor Hau Lung-bin, up to 80 percent of the citizens were in favor of the change. The number of the hotline users in the Greater Taipei increased sharply.

Since 2005, Taipei City consolidated all phone lines ranging from inquiries about public services to the reporting of potholes on the roads or malfunctioning street lamps into one single “1999” hotline phone number.

The hotline received nearly 590,000 calls in August and September, and up to 26 percent of the calls asked for such personal services such as call transfers or registering at hospitals.

Statistics since October are unavailable, but the city plans to limit the duration of each phone call and ensure the hotline is used only for issues regarding public services.