A full-time ambulance in the West End would provide a better service to both residents and tourists visiting Dockyard, Independent MP Terry Lister said on Friday.

Speaking after he tabled a series of questions on the feasibility of an ambulance station at the Port Royal Fire Station, Mr Lister pointed to the average age of tourists to the Island as a major reason to introduce the service.

Mr Lister — a long-time advocate of a west end ambulance — tabled the questions in the House of Assembly, which were answered by former Health Minister Trevor Moniz, now Attorney General.

“Given the age profile of our cruise visitors, I believe that the sooner we get a dedicated ambulance service the better able to serve our visitors Bermuda will be,” Mr Lister said.

Mr Lister asked about the cost of a permanent ambulance service presence in the west and said Mr Moniz had told him that the Ministry was conducting a feasibility study — which will include the cost of maintenance, equipment, overheads and personnel.

“The Minister pointed out that the study needs to be completed so that Government can find a defined service model in order to better determine total costs,” he said.

Mr Lister said that he was pleased that Government was looking into the possibility of an ambulance in the west of the Island.

He added that Government had said it was not yet clear if extra staff would be required to man a Port Royal ambulance — but that it was hoped there would be “no overall increase in staffing in operating the new service.”

And he said that Mr Moniz had explained that a cost/benefit analysis of a new service had not been conducted to assess the impact in terms of a faster response to emergency calls.

Mr Lister added: “He concluded that locating an ambulance with the appropriate Emergency Medical Technicians at Port Royal Fire Station will provide residents and visitors with faster transportation to the hospital.”