In just a few hours, the Sofia Municipality is introducing a completely updated version of Call Sofia — the platform for submitting non-urgent signals from citizens. The changes cover not only the way the system looks, but the entire signal path from describing the problem and directing it to the competent structure to tracking actions and the final response.
The main goal is to make submitting a signal easier for citizens, and the information received — more accurate and useful for the administration. This way, signals will reach the units that can take action more directly, with fewer referrals, additional clarifications and loss of time.
Citizens will be able to see the current status of the signal, the structure that processes it, and the next step in the process. With every important change, they will receive a notification — similar to tracking a parcel from submission to the final result.
The updated platform will also collect better structured data. They will allow the Sofia Municipality to see more clearly where problems are repeated, in which areas they accumulate, which topics are most important to citizens and where resources are most needed. In this way, each signal will contribute not only to solving a specific case, but also to better planning and management of the city.
Submitting signals becomes easier
Until now, citizens often had to navigate between multiple categories themselves and assess what information the administration needed. This created a risk that the problem would be described incompletely or that an inaccurate category would be selected, which subsequently led to additional clarifications and redirection between different structures.
In the updated Call Sofia, the categories will be more understandable and better organized. Users will be able to search by keyword, and the guiding questions will change according to the specific type of problem.
For example, in the case of a compromised manhole report, its location, shape, designation, and the specific problem with the cover are important. A round manhole on the roadway may be part of a utility company's network, while a square or rectangular one may be part of the drainage infrastructure. If the manhole is located on a sidewalk, the responsibility may be different.
The new system will not require people to know this complex organization. It will ask the right questions at the right time and collect the information needed to properly allocate the case.
A better quality report means faster processing
The quality of the information submitted has a direct impact on the processing time. When the problem is accurately described, correctly localized and accompanied by the necessary data, the responsible structure can more quickly assess what actions are needed.
The goal is to make it clear when the signal is submitted:
what exactly the problem is;
where it is located;
what are its main characteristics;
which structure has the competence to take action;
is additional verification or information necessary.
This will reduce the cases in which a signal is forwarded repeatedly between different units until it is determined who should take it on. Less administrative movement means less delay and more time for the actual work on the problem.
The change is also important for the employees who process the signals. Instead of searching for missing information, returning cases for clarification or subsequently establishing whose competence it is, they will receive better structured information right from the start.
This will make Call Sofia a more convenient service for citizens and a more effective working tool for the administration.
Citizens will see who is processing the signal and what is coming next
One of the main problems in the current process was the limited information about what happens after the signal is submitted. The confirmation that it has been accepted did not always answer the most important questions: who is processing it, what is coming next and when development can be expected.
In the updated Call Sofia, the status will show the current stage of work on the signal. The sender will also see the responsible structure that is currently processing the case, without publishing the names of individual employees. When redirected, the information will be updated.
Citizens will receive a notification for any significant change. This way, they will know whether the signal has been distributed, whether additional information is required, which structure is processing it, and when the work on it has been completed.
Tracking will be organized according to a logic familiar to delivery services — with clear information about where the signal is and what is coming next.
More transparency and clearer accountability
The new system aims to reduce the distance between the administrative process and the citizen. The flow of a case can be complicated, but the information the sender receives should not be.
This visibility is important not only for the quality of the service, but also for trust in the institutions. When the process is clear, citizens can follow the work on the case, and the administration bears clearer responsibility for the actions taken.
From individual signals to better solutions for the entire city
Call Sofia processes information on a wide range of problems — from road and sidewalk surfaces, lighting and cleanliness to public transport, green spaces, construction and the state of urban infrastructure.
The new structure of the platform will make data about them more comparable and more reliable.
This will help the Sofia Municipality to identify where the same problem appears repeatedly, which areas require more systematic intervention, which topics become a permanent source of signals, where more control, maintenance or investment is needed, whether the measures taken actually lead to improvement.
Better data allows for more reasoned planning, more accurate assessment of work and more reasonable targeting of limited public resources.