Montreal police say they will hand out pamphlets explaining the dangers of hiring prostitutes. (CBC) 

Montreal police have announced an action plan to crack down on prostitution in the city's east end.

The plan involves targeting potential clients, officials said on Monday.

Six additional police cadets have been hired to patrol Ste-Catherine Street East, said police.

Officers will also set up roadblocks to hand out pamphlets, warning about the consequences of hiring prostitutes.

Most of the prostitutes' clients are not people who live in the neighbourhood, said Montreal police Cmdr. François Cayer.

"In general, it's common people," said Cayer. "It's businessmen and people going or coming from work and sometimes they have baby seats or car seats in the car."

The problem in the Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough has worsened recently due to construction projects in the city's new entertainment district, said local officials.

"You will find a lot of prostitutes probably those prostitutes worked usually in the Quartier des spectacles and they are now in Hochelaga and we cannot accept that," said Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough Mayor Réal Ménard.

So far this year, police said they have arrested 74 clients.

Dopamine, a local group that works with prostitutes, said it is not fully on board with the project.

The organization would prefer sex workers be given access to additional services, a spokesperson said.

The borough said it wants to open a drop-in centre for prostitutes in the coming years.