When I learned that Mayor Adams was facing federal charges, one of my first thoughts was that I hope the stress didn’t lead to a heart attack while he was at work – because that if his ambulance had to pick up FDR, he wouldn’t be able to do it. Arrive at the hospital alive.
Ambulance response times in New York are already long and growing. They are at their highest since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic., and city data shows a continued increase.
Compared to the rest of the country, the difference is staggering. A 2017 study found that while the median arrival time for EMS units in other urban areas in the United States was six minutes, the average in New York was 12 minutes, and up to 20 minutes for emergency rooms in the Bronx. To be clear, this is simply retrieving a patient; the trip back to the hospital is also longer.
The problem is not planning. Ambulances are already stationed throughout the city, with EMT teams on standby at various random locations. The problem is traffic, especially on so-called highways like the FDR Drive.
A multi-lane highway without a shoulder, the FDR crosses the East Side of Manhattan and, above all, provides access to numerous hospitals. It is also the main route many commuters take to enter and pass through the city. For this reason, traffic on the FDR is often interrupted.
I’m not the only New Yorker who has seen an ambulance, lights flashing and siren blaring, struggle to get through traffic on the FDR for 10 minutes or more, only to drive a few hundred yards. People often try to move to the side when they hear sirens, but the traffic is so heavy and the lanes so narrow that the sirens only add to the chaos.
One person’s annoying deadpan is another’s matter of life and death. A 2020 study found that rapid ambulance response times were strongly correlated with increased survival rates after a heart attack. Consider that heart disease and stroke account for 24% of all deaths before age 65 among New York City adults, and it’s clear that this is a health problem public that affects New Yorkers of all socioeconomic statuses.
New York isn’t the only city struggling with congested roads and heavy traffic. One solution that has worked for urban centers like Abu Dhabi is to create emergency service lanes specifically dedicated to police cars, fire trucks and ambulances. These measures could save critical minutes for someone suffering a medical emergency and would likely save lives. Creating a limited access route specifically for emergency services would allow ambulances to move more freely and reduce the time spent from door to hospital for many patients.
A more radical solution would be congestion pricing. The plan will force commuters to avoid Lower Manhattan or pay tolls. Although it would likely divert traffic to the West Side Highway and FDR, the plan would also reduce traffic on local streets and possibly provide ambulances with faster routes to hospitals.
For anyone wondering about the benefits of congestion pricing, London makes a compelling case. Since implementing this policy more than 20 years ago, the city has reduced traffic congestion by 30%. Faster travel times likely mean faster ambulance response, a benefit we can’t overlook when it comes to public safety.
The congestion pricing plan would also significantly increase bus lanes, a measure that is also being adopted in DC. Through its Clear Lanes initiative, DC is creating new bus lanes limited to buses and emergency service vehicles. By banning private cars from traveling in bus lanes – and enforcing those rules with cameras – DC hopes to improve transit times for buses and emergency services.
Yes, New York already has some bus lanes that can be used by emergency services, but these lanes are not well respected, are only available during rush hours, and could be much better enforced (attempts have been made in this sense). As a result, bus lanes are often indistinguishable from normal lanes in terms of traffic density. By limiting who is allowed to travel in bus lanes and increasing traffic enforcement via camera surveillance, New York could see a massive decrease in emergency service responses and bus transit times .
Options exist, and all are better than the status quo. And trust me, it’s not something you want to think about from the back of a broken down ambulance.
New York is a rapidly changing city. Our ambulances should also move.
Bonner is an emergency physician in New York and a member of the OpEd Project at Yale University.
