LIVERMORE FALLS — Police are now able to resume the practice of allowing people under arrest to post bail at the police station instead of going to the Androscoggin County Jail in Auburn.

Prior to the local dispatch center being closed in 2009, police were able to call in local bail commissioners to allow people to post bail at the station, Chief Ernest Steward Jr. said. Someone could be bailed if they had the cash available and charges and conditions warrant it, he said.

There are a lot of warrant arrests that people have the bail money readily available to get themselves out of jail, Steward said.

This week the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Department notified Steward that the Livermore Falls police can fax down bail sheets to the jail to avoid unnecessary transportation.

The bail information needs to be entered into a computer system within a certain period of time, Steward said. Jail staff will now enter that information, he said.

Resuming the practice is expected to save the department time and money.

Steward plans to check with people who were bail commissioners before to see if they are interested in resuming the duty, he said.

[email protected]