Serving with Excellence

Serving with Excellent

SARA AI – The Modern Solution to Non-Emergency Calls

Did you know that on average we receive more than 160,000 non-emergency calls every year?

In 2025, to increase operator availability for 9-1-1 emergency calls, and reduce wait times in the non-emergency queue, the Halton Regional Police Service partnered with a Canadian-based tech company, Hyper, to launch our artificial intelligence call processing system - Smart Answering Routing Assistant - also known as SARA AI.

While all 9-1-1 calls continue to be handled by a human communicator, members of the public who contact our non-emergency phone number are now greeted by a responsive and adaptive automated voice that asks callers a series of short questions before quickly diverting them to the appropriate support.

SARA immediately transfers the call to a human communicator if:

• the situation evolves into an emergency;
• the system does not understand the caller;
• the caller does not speak English and requires translation services;
• unusual activity or discrepancies are detected, or;
• the AI system determines it cannot address the caller’s needs.

Since October 2025, SARA has served as the first point of contact for over 41,000 calls with more than 14 per cent handled entirely by AI. As we continue to use and train the tool in 2026 and beyond, the functionalities will expand, further enhancing our Service’s ability to respond efficiently and effectively.

Back to Top