Logistics of emergency response vehicles: Facility location, routing, and shift scheduling

This thesis discusses different aspects of the logistics of emergency response vehicles. In most parts, we consider providers of ambulance care in the Netherlands. However, also firefighters and air ambulance providers in both Canada and Norway are considered. Even though significant differences exist between the considered systems, they share the task of providing adequate service in emergency situations. In these situations, a prompt response is important and this importance is typically expressed by a response time target set by law. For most emergency services, providing the appropriate care within this target in an efficient way is the main objective. This thesis uses optimization techniques to handle three aspects of the logistical process: facility location, routing, and shift scheduling. All three can have a significant impact on the performance of the system.