A new emergency response program begins Mondays in some of Erie County’s rural communities.

The county’s new EMS program will serve residents in the towns of Aurora, Boston, Colden, Collins, North Collins, Eden, Holland and Wales.

"In consultation with the first responder community and healthcare systems, we saw that Erie County could step in and fill in gaps that address transit time and the burdens on our local EMTs and paramedics," said Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz. "I thank the health department for designing this innovative program. It takes into account our community’s unique needs, and incorporates the valuable resources that already exist among our local volunteers and ambulance services."

A special EMS crew and ambulances will be assigned specifically to those areas, and will be dispatched by 911.

"Quality, responsive pre-hospital medical care is an important step to making sure people who suffer from a serious injury or acute illness attain the best outcomes possible," said Erie County Commissioner of Health Dr. Gale Burstein. "This service is a safety net for critical emergency response, especially during peak call volume hours and when special events exhaust local EMS resources. And starting Monday morning, this team will stand ready to assist."

The county says it’s launching the service in an effort to improve emergency response times in rural areas.