Emergency services -- such as fire protection and ambulance transportation -- are among the most vital functions of local governments.
Communities want to know that those services will be there when they are needed; that the quality of service will be first rate; and that the cost will be prudently managed.
Many local governments provide these services directly. But communities across the country are finding that, by contracting out emergency services, they can have better quality service at less cost ... while still retaining optimal control of these vital functions.
Competition always produces the best service at the lowest price. And this is no less true in the arena of emergency services.
Rural/Metro's nationwide operations are viewed as premier models of how the public and private sectors can come together to provide top-notch services at less cost through correctly administered privatized emergency services.
Rural/Metro has more than 50 years experience in the emergency service business. We provide emergency service to approximately 400 communities in the United States, and respond to more than 3 million calls for help each year.
We are one of the nation's largest private-sector ambulance and fire protection providers.
Rural/Metro is not an experiment or a theory about privatization. Rather, our strong track record of top performance is evidence that competition can work for the public sector as well as the marketplace, by ensuring that citizens -- as well as consumers -- get maximum value for their dollar.
We believe the degree of public/private partnerships that a community forges in its emergency service system dictates the degree of success it will have in achieving quality, cost-effective services. By combining the fiduciary integrity of the public sector, communities with the innovation and business acumen of the private sector can create tremendous value and efficiency.
Our ability to research and explore new and more efficient methods of delivering services is what has been key to our success. Communities can realize ample rewards when they contract with private companies, like Rural/Metro, for emergency services.
Just some of those benefits are:
- Guaranteed performance standards through strict contractual requirements
- Significant cost savings, which can free up tax dollars for other important community services
- Increasing service levels through innovative resource management
- Greater control over services
- Greater breadth of resources
- Eliminating the risk of cost/budget overruns through fixed fee contracts
- Eliminating management and personnel headaches
