Two new paramedic vehicles on the way for residents of Burlington, Milton, Oakville

A pair of new ambulances will soon be on duty for residents of Oakville, Burlington, Milton and Halton Hills.

The new vehicles will cost $108,400 and that needs to be approved by Halton Region at its regular meeting on Wednesday because it’s a Single Source Purchase.

According to Region staff, an unexpected closure of the Ford Canada order desk has delayed the ability to procure replacement vehicles in a timely fashion and the order desk is not anticipated to reopen until the fall of 2023.

Instead, the Region will buy from Rowland Emergency Vehicle Products Inc., which currently has two Ford Explorer emergency response units available.

The two emergency response units that are currently in service have surpassed the end of their seven-year lifecycle.

“Not accepting this opportunity with Rowland Emergency Vehicle Products Inc. now will further delay the order submission and result in emergency response unit delivery in mid-2024,” says the report going before council.

“Replacement of the current emergency response units is needed quickly to mitigate the risk of mechanical failures.”

Every year, Paramedic Services purchases police package sport utility vehicles that are then converted into either paramedic emergency response units or superintendent emergency response units.

“There are no other options available to obtain new paramedic emergency response units at this time.”