City services and 311

Canadian municipalities concentrate non-emergency contact in a single service line. Where a city runs 311, that number reaches every municipal department, and the people answering can route a request to the right one. For Halifax that is Halifax Regional Municipality.

Numbers and contacts

• City services (311)311

  Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

  Official page

• 311 toll-free (elsewhere in Nova Scotia)1-800-835-6428

  For callers inside Nova Scotia but outside the Halifax region.

  Official page

• 311 from outside Nova Scotia902-490-4000

  Official page

• Halifax City Hall / Mayor's Office1841 Argyle St., Halifax, NS (Mayor's Office 902-490-4010)

  Mailing address: PO Box 1749, Halifax, NS B3J 3A5.

  Official page

• Transit information (Halifax Transit)311

  311 handles Halifax Transit routes, schedules and harbour ferry information.

  Official page

Official city services

These go directly to the municipality’s own pages for the services residents use most. Fares, fees, hours and collection schedules change, so each link is the live source rather than a snapshot copied here.

• Halifax Transit fares, tickets and passes — Fare products including the Halifax-Dartmouth harbour ferries.
• Halifax Transit routes and schedules — Bus routes, ferry service and service adjustments.
• Garbage, recycling and green cart — Collection schedules and what goes where.
• Snow clearing service standards — Winter operations and street clearing priorities.
• Building and development permits — Permit applications and the planning and development counter.
• Halifax Public Libraries — Branches across Halifax Regional Municipality.

Getting a request acted on

A municipal request is only as useful as its location. Whatever the issue — a pothole, a broken streetlight, missed collection, a water main leak, an unshovelled sidewalk — the details that get it fixed are the same:

• The exact address, or the nearest intersection, plus which side of the street.
• What the problem is and when you first noticed it.
• A photo, where the problem is visible — most cities accept attachments online.
• Whether it is on public property or private. Cities can only act on what they own, and this is the most common reason a request is closed without action.
• A reference number. Keep it: it is what you quote when you follow up.

What is not the city’s job

A surprising share of complaints go to the wrong body. In most Canadian cities, the following are handled by someone else entirely:

• Police, fire and medical emergencies — 911. Not the city service line.
• Highways and provincial roads — the province, not the municipality. City crews maintain local roads only.
• Electricity, natural gas and telecoms — the utility or the provider. See the driving and utilities information for who regulates them in Nova Scotia.
• Landlord and tenant disputes — a provincial tribunal, not the city.
• Schools and hospitals — school boards and regional health authorities.