Staffing isn’t the only thing to blame for Austin’s slow 911 response times

When someone calls 911 for help in Austin, about 93 percent of those calls are answered within 15 seconds. But once those calls are answered, police, fire or EMS must then respond.

And those public safety agencies are not responding as quickly as they should.

Data revealed this week show it’s taking longer than national standards recommend for help to arrive in Austin. Public safety officials blame staffing shortages but also said growth and traffic are contributing factors.

As the city hires more first responders, officials expect those response times to go down – but it could be a while before that happens. Growth means a need for even more staff and equipment, which could be challenging on a tight budget.

Police response 

Austin police aim to respond to a call within 10 minutes and 44 seconds. But the department has been struggling to meet that goal for the last several years.

In 2022, the city’s average response time for urgent and emergency calls was around 10 minutes and 50 seconds. Two years later, response times had increased by about two minutes.

“These increases could be attributed to several causes, including our staffing numbers on patrol and the increased growth and (construction) throughout the city,” Police Chief Lisa Davis said.

She said there has been some improvement, though: In March, response times dropped to about 11 minutes and 30 seconds.

APD is more than 300 officers short but continues to see progress with recruiting and retention efforts, Davis said. The department is also using officers not on regular patrols, like investigators, to help fill staffing gaps.

The goal is to get those investigators off the streets by the end of the year, she said, which will be possible once new cadets graduate.

Davis said construction and road closures are adding congestion to major thoroughfares, making it more difficult for officers to respond quickly, especially as once-rural areas are developed.

Austin fire

Austin’s fire department also struggles with response times. Firefighters should arrive within eight minutes of a call, but only about 69 percent of calls are meeting that threshold, according to the data.

Austin Fire Chief Joel Baker said the city has been struggling since 2016, when about 83 percent of calls were answered within eight minutes.

“In 2016, the city was not as populous. We had less traffic. We had less high-rise and mid-rise buildings. We had less residential construction going on,” he said. “But now you look at 2024, we are not able to meet those response times within eight minutes.”

He said the city has outgrown the pace of the fire department. Calls have increased; construction and traffic have added road barriers; and more dense housing and high-rises have made it difficult to keep up, he said.

“We have not staffed aerial trucks in 30 years,” Baker said. These trucks have ladders that can reach elevated areas in an emergency. “In 1995, the city of Austin had approximately 75 high-rise buildings with 13 aerial trucks. Today, we have over 230 high-rise buildings, and we still have 13 aerial trucks.”

Baker said the goal is to increase the staffing of aerial trucks to better respond to fires. A high-rise fire requires three aerial trucks, while a house fire requires two. If those fires get out of hand, additional trucks are sent out, he said; that leaves only a handful available to respond to other emergencies.

“That is unacceptable,” he said.

Five fire stations have opened since 2020 to help respond to newly developed areas. The fire department also contracts with Sunset Valley, Shady Hollow and ESD 4 in West Austin to help respond to those growing areas. But there are still gaps in service areas, he said, which contributes to longer response times.

Baker said the Austin Fire Department is working on a strategic plan to address the issues.

EMS

Austin-Travis County EMS Chief Robert Luckritz said EMS has 88 open positions – the lowest it’s had in a number of years. Even still, he said, the department also struggles with response times.

He said over the last year, the department has worked to drop response times to be between eight and nine minutes, depending on the call. At the beginning of 2024, a high-priority call like a heart attack would take on average eight and a half minutes for a response. As of March, that time has dropped to just over eight minutes.

“There is still a lot of work to be done there as we recognize the changes and complexities of EMS in the city and county,” he said.

Luckritz said EMS has also been challenged by the area’s rapid growth and staffing needs.

“Growth for us is not just about the short-term growth in order to get to the needs of the current staffing,” he said. “It’s also about how do we project out and ensure that we grow for long-term sustainability.”

This story was produced as part of the Austin Monitor’s reporting partnership with KUT.

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