Surrey bylaw officers have taken down more than 500 election signs after a handful of residents filed complaints with the city.

Election signs aren't allowed to be placed within 25 metres of intersections in Surrey.

Surrey Manager of Public Safety Operations Jas Rehal says even though all candidates received a letter from the city that explained the rules, dozens of street corners were cluttered with political ads.

"The signs are taken back to our operations centre and the candidates can retrieve the signs," Rehal said.

"They're held there for 72 hours and they can pay $25 per sign to retrieve them."

Rehal says the bylaw was introduced because the signs can create a visual distraction for drivers.

"It's nothing new," he said."It was there the last election as well because it's a safety issue for drivers at intersections."

Read more from CBC British Columbia