Ever wondered why you just heard a bunch of police cars driving through your neighborhood? Well, a new app from a Toronto software developer may tell you exactly why.

Developed by Riley Durant, Tpscalls gives you access to real-time data from the Toronto Police Service on the go.

Before it was a mobile app, tpscalls was an interactive map that Durant launched as a side project. Since starting the project in 2017, he tells blogTO that he’s significantly improved the map’s interface by focusing on usability and aesthetics.

The app allows you to click on a dot on the map. A pop-up will appear with the type of report that has been made to the police. This may include assault, robbery, offensive acts and collisions.

The pop-up also shows you exactly when the conversation took place and in which environment the conversation took place.

Durant told blogTO that he’s still working on several new features to make the app an even better community and safety tool. Future updates include heat maps, push notifications for nearby or specific incidents, and live traffic integration.

After clicking on a dot, you can see what kind of call was made to the police. Photo: tpscalls.

According to the developer, the mobile version now has a cleaner design than the original map, making navigation easier and improving performance, resulting in faster loading times.

In the future, Durant will add advanced filtering options to customize views by time frame, incident type, and location. He’s also working on features that will help foster community engagement, such as user feedback and incident reporting options to improve accuracy.

The app is now available for both iOS and Android.