Latest news with #nonemergency
CBC
07-08-2025
- General
- CBC
Got a non-emergency request for Toronto police? You can now call *877
Social Sharing Toronto Police Services announced a new, much shorter non-emergency number that they hope will be easier for residents to remember and help further reduce 911 wait times. People can now dial *TPS or *877 on their mobile devices to reach first responders for any situations that are not life-threatening or require immediate response, said Supt. Greg Watts. He hopes the new number will not only be easier to recall, but will stop people from automatically calling 911 in non-emergencies. "In an emergency, seconds count," he said. "We've worked really, really hard to modernize how we are intaking information from the public … so you don't always have to wait on hold." While Toronto police have made strides in recent years to reduce 911 wait times, Watts said any initiative to further reduce waits "is a good thing." WATCH | Toronto police brought in new technology to improve 911 response times: How digital upgrades to Toronto's 911 system could improve response times 3 months ago Toronto police are aiming to make the city's 911 systems more efficient and reliable by replacing aging analog technology. CBC's Talia Ricci got a first look at how the new digital network could help emergency service providers improve response time. Recent 911 wait times are down to an average of 28 seconds – about 69 per cent lower than wait times seen in the same period last year, he said. "We still have a lot of work to do, but we're going in the right direction," Watts said. The longer non-emergency number, 416-808-2222, is still available for residents, police said in a news release. People using a landline or struggling to reach dispatchers via the new number are encouraged to use the longer number instead, said the release. Police say the new number is available exclusively on wireless devices and works on Rogers, Bell, TELUS, Freedom Mobile and any of their affiliated companies' networks. 'Helps us help the public': police In 2022, a CBC Toronto investigation revealed many people were on hold for over two minutes on 911 before they could reach an operator. Later that year, a report by the auditor general found staffing problems and call volume were causing call-answering delays. That report also recommended police and the City of Toronto collaborate and create "a shorter and easier to remember number" for non-emergencies. Watts said the development of a shorter non-emergency number has been in the works "for a long time," but that the auditor general's 2022 report helped drive the project ahead. "When we saw that recommendation come out, we were like, 'yes! This is a good one,'" he said. "Because it not only helps the public, it helps us help the public better too."
CTV News
07-08-2025
- General
- CTV News
There is now a new three-digit number you can dial to reach the Toronto police non-emergency line
A Toronto police officer's uniform is seen during a press conference in Toronto on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston You can now dial a three-digit number to reach the Toronto police non-emergency line as the service continues its efforts to crack down on unnecessary 911 calls. As of today, wireless customers on the networks of Rogers, Bell, TELUS, Freedom Mobile and their subsidiaries will be able to dial 877 to reach the Toronto Police Service's non-emergency line. However, it should be noted that the number can not be dialed from traditional landlines at this time. The TPS says that anyone calling from a landline should continue to dial (416) 808-2222 to reach its non-emergency line. 'Toronto Police Service thanks our wireless partners for their support in making this important change possible, to help improve accessibility and public safety across the city,' a news release notes. The launch of the new three digit non-emergency number fulfills one of the recommendations that was made in a 2022 report by Toronto's Auditor General examining 911 call wait times. That report found that 57 per cent of all calls to 911 were not for emergency assistance. The report also revealed that there were more than 13,000 calls in 2021 in which the wait time to speak with an operator exceeded a minute. The TPS says that its communication centre receives nearly two million calls annually.
CTV News
19-07-2025
- CTV News
Anishinabek police launch online non-emergency crime reporting tool
Anishinabek police launch online non-emergency crime reporting tool Anishinabek police launch online tool for non-emergency crime reporting, like theft or vandalism, to ease pressure on emergency lines.
CTV News
12-07-2025
- CTV News
Winnipeg police expanding use of artificial intelligence for non-emergency calls
The Winnipeg Police Service has launched a pilot project, using an AI-powered voice agent to answer calls on its non-emergency line.
CBC
12-07-2025
- Business
- CBC
Winnipeg police expand AI agent pilot program for non-emergency line
More Winnipeg residents will have their non-emergency calls answered by artificial intelligence as the police service expands its AI-powered voice agent pilot program next week. Winnipeg Police Service said in a Friday news release that it has been testing the system for nearly a year, with the hopes that the AI agent will replace the existing automated voice system that guides callers through a pre-recorded list of options. Police said the non-emergency line has received about 900 calls per day, with about 172,000 calls logged so far this year. Insp. Gord Spado says the new AI system is intended to be more conversational and user-friendly compared to the "cumbersome" voice system Winnipeg police currently use. "Our goal of this project is really about improving customer service and giving a modern flair to the call-taking process with our organization," Spado said at a news conference on Friday. He said the police will begin ramping up daily testing next week, starting with two hours per day. If all goes well, the AI agent will soon be triaging calls for six to seven hours per day. Eventually, the service will operate 24 hours a day, Spado said. "We really want to get it to the point where a person can call, say what they need and not worry about where they are in that list of options, and the AI agent can forward them to the most appropriate resource," he said. The non-emergency line agent is one of six AI-centred pilot projects the city announced last June. Other pilots include an automated chat agent for 311 inquiries and automated invoice processing. Mayor Scott Gillingham said the police service's AI agent is "exactly the kind of innovation that [he] hoped for" when he pushed city staff to consider how AI could be used across municipal services. "This is about delivering good customer service to the people of Winnipeg and making a heavy workload a little more manageable for our frontline staff," Gillingham said during the press conference announcing the pilot's expanded scope. He said the city is taking a "careful" and "measured" approach to AI integration by slowly expanding the pilot. Brandon University sociology professor Chris Schneider, who specializes in the social impact of new media, said he's "cautiously optimistic" about Winnipeg police using AI, emphasizing the caution. Vancouver police use a similar AI-powered tool for calls, which was developed by an American company called Genesys. Schneider said relying on large international companies raises concerns around data privacy and public safety. "Can they assure the public that there will be no manipulation, or that it's perfectly safe and cannot be manipulated by outside actors?" he said in an interview with Up to Speed 's Chloe Friesen on Friday afternoon. "There's a lot of questions here and very few answers, unfortunately." He said the AI agent will likely help callers get service faster, making them less likely to hang up before they get the help they need. However, the automated experience could become frustrating without a human on the other end of the line, Schneider said. According to Winnipeg police's website, residents should use the non-emergency line to report crimes where the suspect has left the scene, property crimes that are no longer in progress, and suspicious circumstances. In Friday's news release, police encouraged callers to speak in clear, full, sentences, while limiting background noise and being patient while the AI agent finishes its prompts. Schneider said calm, clear communication may be difficult if a caller has recently witnessed or been the victim of a crime, even if it's not an emergency. "This is one of the basic problems with the incorporation of AI, is AI does not have any kind of empathy. I think empathy goes a long way in talking people through situations where they might be upset because something terrible has happened to them, their family or their property," he said. Spado said the police service hopes to decide whether the AI agent will become permanent by the end of the year. He said it is only available in English, but they are working to expand the tool to French-speaking residents soon.
