New dedicated bylaw complaint line in Waterloo Region

A person can be seen holding a cell phone in this undated photo. (Pexels/Porapak Apichodilok)

People in Waterloo Region have a new way to reach out for help with bylaw infractions.

A dedicated bylaw phone number, 519-585-8088, officially launched throughout the region on Monday.

According to the Waterloo Regional Police Service, this new line frees up the police’s emergency and non-emergency numbers as bylaw calls were previously handled by the police.

“This has contributed to increased call volumes within police communications, reduced operational efficiency and heightened privacy concerns,” a release from the police service said.

Last year, police handled 9,649 calls for bylaw issues.

Emergency calls should still be made to 911 and the police’s non-emergency number is still 519-570-9777.