Caution | Mandatory Outdoor Water Restrictions

Due to continued dry conditions, mandatory Stage 1 Outdoor Water Restrictions are in place until further notice.

Visit Calgary.ca/restrictions for more information.

Calgary 9-1-1 plan and budget

2023-2026

Calgary 9-1-1 connects Calgarians with the emergency services they require by evaluating and dispatching 9-1-1 and non-emergency calls from within Calgary and for client agencies located outside of the city. We coordinate with our partners to deliver accurate and timely information to first responders.

Our customers

  • Calgarians and visitors calling 9-1-1
  • Calgarians and visitors with non-emergency requests
  • First-responder agencies (Police, Fire and EMS)
  • Secondary response agencies (Bylaw Education & Compliance, Public Transit, regional partners, rural fire departments)

Our partners

  • Alberta Health Services
  • Regional partners
  • Rural fire departments
  • The Royal Canadian Mounted Police
  • 2-1-1 Distress Centre
  • Other internal business units

Value to Calgarians


  • access to reliable 9-1-1 services
  • offer support in 200 different languages
  • efficient dispatch to emergency events that require multi-agency responses
  • provide contracted service to regional partners and rural fire departments

What we deliver


  • Prompt response to 9-1-1 calls.
  • Meet call dispatch time targets.
  • Prioritize communication of accurate and timely information to first responders.
  • Strategic coordination with partnering agencies to respond to emergencies efficiently and effectively.
  • Quality life-saving directions over the phone.

Budget breakdown


service plan budget

Legend

Operating ($millions)
Capital ($millions)
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service plan budget
Service line Breakdown
Calgary 9-1-1

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Service performance


Expected 2026 performance.

Initial 9-1-1 calls answered within 15 seconds

2022 was 96%

2023 mid-year was 95%

Police 9-1-1 calls answered within 15 seconds

2022 was 73%

2023 mid-year was 77.3%

Calgarians satisfied with the job The City is doing in providing 9-1-1 services

2022 was 82%

Average answer time for Police non-emergency calls

2021 was 2min

2023 mid-year was 3.8min

# of emergency call transfers to the 211 Distress Centre

2021 was 1,891

2023 mid-year was 1,318

What we've heard

Calgary 9-1-1 strategic actions are informed by ongoing engagement with Calgarians and our partners. Calgarians identified responsiveness and reliability as key service values, followed by safety and quality. Public education and awareness of when to call 9-1-1 compared to other services was also considered important. The 2021 Fall Quality of Life and Citizen Satisfaction survey indicated:

  • 100 per cent of Calgarians want more or the same investment in service.
  • 100 per cent of Calgarians consider 9-1-1 services important.
  • 94 per cent are satisfied with Calgary 9-1-1 services.
Participate and view results of City research

What we're watching

  • Calgary’s population is growing and becoming more diverse, which will influence call volume and complexity.
  • Calgary 9-1-1 will continue to evolve with emerging needs and will manage how resources are deployed.
  • Our service must undertake multiple strategic projects to advance the critical technology and infrastructure that supports emergency response.
  • Continuing to advance the Unified Computer Aided Dispatch project will support digital recording and storage system upgrades and offer interoperability with Fire and the Calgary Police Service.
  • Enabling these service improvements will be dependent on staff resiliency and capacity to learn and adapt to new emergency communications processes and protocols.
  • The provincial decision to transfer EMS dispatch services to Alberta Health Services in 2021 will require that we continue to seek collaborative solutions to mitigate the impact on service delivery and coordinate multi-agency response in the interest of public safety.

The future


What we plan to do

We will deliver reliable and resilient service through coordinated emergency response and improved interoperability. We will leverage technology and promote a healthy workplace to optimize service delivery and meet evolving citizen expectations.

How we're going to get there

  • Improve emergency response coordination and reduce 9-1-1 processing times by unifying Police and Fire incident management systems.
  • Enable ongoing adoption of the emerging capabilities of modern communication networks by deploying Next Generation 9-1-1 infrastructure.
  • Meet emerging and evolving expectations of Calgarians through ongoing staff training and development on systems and service changes.
  • Improve the caller experience by optimizing the Calgary 9-1-1 service delivery model and reducing call transfers.
  • Ensure resilience and continuity of 9-1-1 operations through proactive risk-based planning and mitigation for emerging and evolving threats.

More initiatives

Most requested services