Seoul's 120 Dasan Call Center to offer 24-hour chat and sign-language services from October

Seoul's 120 Dasan Call Center, the city's go-to service for everyday civic complaints and inquiries, is expanding to a full 24-hour consultation system, making help available any time — weekday or weekend, day or night.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government's 120 Dasan Call Foundation announced Sunday that it will strengthen its round-the-clock service by extending live chat and sign-language consultations beyond their current limited hours, building on the phone-based 24-hour system already in place.

To meet growing demand for digital, non-face-to-face consultations, the foundation will significantly expand the hours of its live chat service, which currently runs on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Starting next month, the service will operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year — including nights, weekends and public holidays — with dedicated staff added for overnight and off-peak shifts.

Since its launch in October 2024, the live chat service has handled about 234,000 cumulative consultations. It is accessible through the foundation's website, its official social media channels, a digital interactive voice response system and the chatbot Seoul Talk, connecting users directly with a specialist without any phone wait time.

Sign-language consultations will also be extended to 24-hour coverage. During regular weekday hours — 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. — dedicated sign-language specialists at the foundation will continue to handle inquiries directly. Outside those hours, users will be directed to sign-language services provided by the Seoul Sign Language Interpretation Center.

The foundation also plans to explore expanding the 120 Donghaeng call taxi service — heavily used by senior citizens — to round-the-clock availability. Since the service launched its dedicated line, "120 + 6," last month, it has logged about 9,800 requests in a single month, reflecting strong public demand.

Since its official opening in 2007, the 120 Dasan Call Center has handled about 150 million cumulative consultations. The AI-assisted live digital chat service, introduced in October 2024, has recorded about 234,000 cumulative cases to date.

"Through the 24-hour expansion of chat consultations and the establishment of a linked sign-language support system, we will reduce gaps in service during nights and holidays and improve accessibility so that any resident can receive assistance whenever they need it," said Song Ju-beom, chairman of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's 120 Dasan Call Foundation.