Two New York City Council committees are holding a hearing on glitches to the city’s emergency 911 system that at times have forced phone operators to resort to pen and paper.

No calls coming into the system have been affected, but operators sometimes have had to go back to the old way of doing things, sending runners with hand-written messages to dispatchers who then radio emergency responders.

The city is undergoing a $2 billion modernization of its 911 system, including using new technology and building a new backup call center. But the new dispatch computer system has gone down a few times, lasting from a couple of minutes to about an hour.

The council committees on public safety and on fire and criminal justice services plan to meet Monday afternoon.

(AP)