China Focus: Hotline service a "Chinese solution" for Beijing's urban governance

BEIJING, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) -- Braving the chilly winter morning, Guo Changyi, a bus driver for Beijing Public Transport, arrived at the company office before sunrise to inspect and clean the bus and adjust its interior temperature.

Precisely on the scheduled time at 6:55 a.m., Guo's bus arrived at a stop on Chaoyang Road in Beijing's Chaoyang District to pick up pupils heading to Hujialou Central Primary School, about six kilometers away.

This tailor-made direct bus route offers convenient and efficient transportation for primary and middle school students in the Chinese capital who travel between their communities and campuses without being accompanied by their parents. The service also helps alleviate traffic congestion and parking difficulties around schools during rush hours, often caused by parents driving their children to and from school.

Beijing introduced the service in September 2023 to address urban traffic congestion. Through the joint efforts of local authorities, including education and transportation departments, over 300 such bus routes have been launched, transporting 23,000 students and parents daily, according to the Beijing Municipal Commission of Transport. The service is also accessible to parents who accompany their young children.

The dedicated bus service reflects Beijing's new approach to urban governance. In 2019, Beijing, home to over 20 million residents, launched an innovative "swift response to public complaints" initiative aimed at addressing public concerns promptly and resolving everyday challenges efficiently.

The initiative has integrated more than 60 hotline services into a single unified hotline number -- 12345 -- which serves as the primary channel for residents to voice their concerns.

Operating 24/7, the hotline is staffed by over 1,700 operators who work in shifts to address calls and handle requests covering nearly every aspect of urban life, including transportation, housing, education, healthcare, employment and business services.

According to official data, in the past six years, Beijing has processed approximately 150 million public complaints, with both the resolution and satisfaction rates reaching nearly 97 percent.

PEOPLE-CENTERED URBANIZATION

"The Beijing 12345 hotline dates back to 1987 with only one telephone and three operators," said Wang Yue, an official of the Beijing Citizen Hotline Service Center.

According to Wang, in the 1980s, dozens of large and medium-sized cities across China set up mayor's hotline services, which were gradually unified into 12345 government hotlines around 2000.

"There were hotlines before, why didn't people call more often? Because even if you do call, the problem usually didn't get solved," said Liu Huan, an operator of Beijing's 12345 hotline, adding that the appeal of the hotline service lies in the swiftness in addressing people's concerns.

Once a complaint is filed through Beijing's 12345 hotline, it is promptly forwarded to relevant government departments and public service companies for resolution. The outcome is then evaluated by the complainants, ensuring active engagement, assessment and oversight in the city's governance by the public.

"The swift response to public complaints has significantly raised the awareness of staff at all levels to better serve the people," said Yao Lei, director of the Beijing Citizen Hotline Service Center. "In particular, those directly providing services to citizens and the business community have made significant improvements in their work style."

As Beijing continues to refine and improve the mechanism, staff at the 12345 hotline, along with local authorities, are shifting from merely reacting to calls to proactively solving problems.

Since 2021, Beijing has used big data analysis to identify key concerns of the residents and launched targeted monthly projects, such as installing elevators in old buildings, facilitating property ownership certificate applications, and upgrading traffic lights.

Over the past four years, Beijing has addressed more than 60 categories of issues through special governance projects, completing over 1,800 tasks and introducing 400 policies, according to Sun Fang, deputy director of the Beijing municipal bureau of government service and data management.

"I want to call 12345 again to thank everyone involved in resolving my issue," said Yang Jiansheng, a resident of Xicheng District. Yang had previously contacted the hotline to complain about failing to obtain his property ownership certificate for a house he purchased over a decade ago. Thanks to concerted efforts by all involved parties, Yang recently received his certificate.

"CHINESE SOLUTION"

Over the years, "Need help? Dial 12345" has become a catchphrase among Beijing residents. With the increasing popularity of the hotline service, even foreigners choose to turn to it for help.

"We often receive phone calls from foreigners in Beijing, mostly consulting about visa extensions and work permits, as well as other aspects of life in the city," said Wang Shuo, an English operator of Beijing's 12345 hotline.

According to the Beijing Citizen Hotline Service Center, the foreign-language services are now available in English, French, German, Russian, Spanish, Arabic, Japanese and Korean.

Gleisi Hoffmann, president of Brazil's Workers' Party, praised Beijing's 12345 hotline during a visit to the center in April. She said the platform that integrates resources and strength from all parties embodies the Communist Party of China's philosophy and purpose of putting the people first and serving the people wholeheartedly.

"The 12345 is a successful example of meeting people's needs and solving complex problems in modern megacities. You have inspired all of us," Andreas Grammatikogiannis, deputy mayor of Athens, said when addressing the 2024 Beijing Forum on Swift Response to Public Complaints, which was held from Wednesday to Thursday.

"The Beijing hotline integrates the human touch with the technological component. I think this is part of the wonderful innovation of the Beijing model," said Erik Nilsson, an editor at China Daily, at the forum.

An evaluation report on global city hotline services and governance effectiveness, released during the forum, highlights Beijing's unique governance model, characterized by whole-process feedback, comprehensive services and citizen participation. This approach offers a "Chinese solution" to the global urban governance reform centered on city hotline services, the report said. ■