How long you can expect to wait for police in London on the rise
Police response times are suffering in London as officers face increasingly complex calls for help.
On Thursday, the London Police Services Board received the 2020 Annual Report on policing, including average response times to 911 calls.
The highest priority calls (Code 1), life-threatening emergencies, now take an average of nine minutes between calling 911 and the arrival of a police officer.
Urgent calls of a non-life-threatening crime in progress now takes two hours and 44 minutes on average, and the response to non-urgent calls averages over 13-and-a-half hours.
“That’s very valuable time. Evidence, life and health are at risk,” says Rick Robson on behalf of the London Police Association (LPA), the union that represents officers.
Deputy Chief Stuart Betts told the police board that response times reflect the rising complexity of policing.
“The nature of the calls has changed,” explained Betts. “The complexity has increased, and it's part of an overall increasing degree of complexity in the justice system.”
Since 2011, the average time spent on each police call has risen 27 per cent, to two hours and 41 minutes.
(Source: 2020 Annual Report to London Police Services Board)
(Source: 2020 Annual Report to London Police Services Board)
The LPA says the situation is taking a toll on officers.
“Our officers are burning out,” admits Robson. “They cannot continue to go significant call to significant call and continue to have 50 to 100 calls waiting in the queue for them.”
The nine-minute response for “lights and siren” emergency calls represents the time between a 911 call is placed and an officer arriving on scene, including two minutes and thirty-five seconds (average) that the caller speaks to an operator before police are dispatched.
(Source: 2020 Annual Report to London Police Services Board)
(Source: 2020 Annual Report to London Police Services Board)
Unlike fire and ambulance service, there is no target for police response times.
Betts says in part that’s because police are dispatched from vehicles in the field rather than neighbourhood stations.
Betts and Robson agree that speeding up response times will require system-wide change.
“Unless there is a change from police being the front line for mental health and other social ills, the only other answer is more resources,” says Robson.
“Quite frankly, adding more officers will make an impact, but it won’t make a defining impact,” explains Betts. “There are more things we can do like adding technology that will allow us to be in the right place at the right times.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Police arrest 3 Indian nationals in killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
Five areas Canada's foreign interference commissioner says needs more investigation
Commissioner Marie-Josee Hogue released her interim report examining foreign election interference on Friday. Here are five elements of the issue that Hogue says she needs to further probe before she can make conclusions or recommendations.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
Why your airfare may be getting more expensive
Skyrocketing airfare prices are linked to heightened competition and rising food and fuel, according to the CAA.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
New weight-loss drug Wegovy not a 'magic bullet,' doctor warns
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Drew Carey is never quitting 'The Price Is Right'
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
Funeral today for broadcasting legend and voice of 'Hockey Night in Canada' Bob Cole
A funeral is being held today for hockey broadcasting legend Bob Cole in his hometown of St. John's, N.L.
Foreign meddling 'did not affect' overall federal election results: inquiry report
Foreign interference by China did not affect the overall results of the 2019 and 2021 general elections won by Justin Trudeau's Liberals, a federal commission of inquiry has found.