Two-wheeled Ambulances Coming

Today Mayor Nickels announced a new Seattle motorcycle medic team that will be patrolling the streets in 2008. They can weave in and out of traffic and get to incident sites faster than an ambulance (although we've seen motorcycles weaving in and out of traffic, and...who's going to come out when the motorcycle EMTs go down?) and other cities are doing it, so why shouldn't we? Of course, they're not going to give you a lift to Harborview.

“Seattle is a leader in emergency medicine. We know that every minute counts when it comes to saving lives,” said Nickels. “Motorcycles present an opportunity to ensure our paramedics arrive as quickly as possible - even in heavy traffic.”

The most interesting thing about the press release from the Mayor's office is the dire claim that medical calls have increased 46% in the last seven years downtown where the motorcycles will be depolyed. Yee-ouch. Two bikes, outfitted with firemen, defibrillators and some other odds and ends will cost about $570,000 annually.