Albuquerque — The Duke City has become a little more tech savvy.

Mayor Martin Chávez announced Friday that Albuquerque is now the second major city to offer 311 non-emergency city services on Twitter, the free, social messaging utility.

“I suspect our counterparts around the country will catch us, but it’s going to take a few months,” Mayor Chávez said.

Residents can already contact the Citizen Contact Center 311 via phone, e-mail and text messages. The addition of Twitter allows for yet another mode of direct contact with the city. While Twitter gained its popularity from its use by celebrities to send out mass messages, it can also be used for direct one-on-one contact.

“We’re adding another vehicle of communication,” said Esther Tenenbaum, division manager of the 311 Citizen Contact Center in Albuquerque.

The 311 service allows people to contact the city 24 hours a day, seven days a week. A staff of 54 attends to an average of 7,500 questions or complaints a day, Tenenbaum said, and they expect that number to reach up to 8,000 now that they are linked into Twitter.

“We already know this is the best 311 system — people come from other parts of the country to see how we do it,” Mayor Chávez said.

In addition to getting information about city services, facilities and events, citizens can use the service to report graffiti, missing street signs and damaged roads. Spanish-speaking operators are also available.

“People can take a picture of the pothole and the address with their phone,” Tenenbaum said.

Chávez said the service allows the city to act as dispatch on complaints. The average response to reports of graffiti is between two to four hours.

The mayor already has 400 people following his own Twitter, and he’s not the only one in the family on the network.

Duke, the first dog in the world to twitter, has his own account, and will offer advice regarding leash laws, pet adoption and veterinary care.

To sign up for Albuquerque 311 twitter feeds, visit www.twitter.com/cabq. For more information about the city’s 311 service, visit www.cabq.gov.