New York City lawmakers will address growing concerns about emergency response times after a new report shows first responders are taking longer to respond to life-threatening calls.
A new report released later this week by the city comptroller’s office comparing 2026 to 2015 shows FDNY ambulance response times to emergencies increased by 3 minutes and 50 seconds. This brings the increase to over 40%.
Meanwhile, response times to non-life-threatening emergencies more than doubled to an average of 14 minutes and 49 seconds. It’s not just actual response times – the volume of calls they respond to increases as well.
On Tuesday, the New York City Council will hold a hearing to analyze this latest report, hear testimony, and consider possible legislation to improve emergency response operations.
The Auditor General’s figures acknowledge that this will be tackled with a multi-faceted approach, including addressing everything from high turnover rates for first responders and paramedics to their wages, logistics, appropriate staffing of high traffic areas and ensuring more of the ambulance fleet is in good working order to respond to emergencies.
To address the problem, Assemblywoman Joann Ariola plans to introduce a bill that would require New York City Emergency Management to issue an emergency notification every time the FDNY has more than 25 ambulances on call.
The FDNY called the increase in response times “unacceptable” and pledged to reverse the trend in a statement Tuesday morning.
“The department is currently going through a challenging period with increasing response times. We know this is unacceptable and we are working tirelessly to reverse this trend,” a spokesperson said.
“We will continue to take steps to improve response times and keep New Yorkers safe, including improving coordination with hospitals, increasing efficiencies in high-traffic areas and increasing operational visibility to help units quickly restore service.”