One in every 10 general phone calls to police communications centres - excluding 111 calls - are abandoned by callers.
National law and order spokesman Tony Ryall says the figures, obtained using parliamentary questions, show the number of abandoned general calls to the three police centres has skyrocketed.
"To have
one in 10 callers hanging up in frustration is appalling. That's 180,000 calls, many of which would have been emergencies," he said.
Waiting times were now over a minute for general calls to the Auckland and Wellington centres.
In the 12 months to May, 178,915 general calls to the three police communications centres were abandoned - 10 per cent of all calls. In the year to May last year, 181,495 general calls were abandoned.
Abandoned calls in the year to May 2002 totalled 62,000.
Mr Ryall said the review of police communications centres released last month had criticised the number of general calls abandoned as unacceptably high.
The review followed a number of 111 bungles, including the case of Auckland woman Iraena Asher, who disappeared in Piha in October after calling for help.
"Ever since Iraena Asher the Government has done nothing but sit around and wait for a report," Mr Ryall said.
Police Minister George Hawkins' spokesman referred the Herald to the police for comment. Police national headquarters could not be contacted.
Mr Ryall said another problem was the frustration of people just trying to get through. Many calls entering the centres through the general queue were transferred from police stations.
"As the general queue can have long delays if operators are dealing with 111 calls, this leads to immense customer frustration."
The review says the communications centres get about 1.6 million calls each year. Last year 466,000 came through the national emergency 111 number run by Telecom.
Abandoned general calls to police communications centres:
* Year to May 2002: 62,707
* May 2003: 111,150
* May 2004: 181,495
* May 2005: 178,915
* *Excludes 111 calls
