City ambulances, which have been equipped with GPS systems since 2005, cannot provide turn-by-turn directions.
According to the New York City Fire Department, the systems are only designed to help dispatchers keep track of the rigs.
Instead, EMS workers use paper maps if they need to figure out their route.
The New York City Fire Department says the $10,000 GPS devices have helped shave 26 seconds off response times by helping dispatchers figure out which ambulance is closest to an emergency.
FDNY sources tell the New York Daily News that since paramedics are often very familiar with their neighborhoods, so navigational GPS is not seen as crucial.
The News says there are no immediate plans to overhaul the system.
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(Source: NY1)
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4 Responses
This seems ridiculous
Why is it ridiculous if they know all the streets in the neighborhood? They don’t cover that large an area and they are stationed in the same area, all the time.
GPS systems are useless for directions in the Bronx because so many “streets” are actually stairways. Including mine.
Why $10,000? I downloaded one for my Blackberry for a few dollars and it works fine.