NEW ORLEANS — Since 2019 the City of New Orleans has contracted a private service, On Scene Services, to respond to minor traffic accidents to take pressure off of NOPD.
On the Eyewitness Morning News on Tuesday, City Council President, Helena Moreno, said the council wants the company's contract to be enhanced.
"The city council is willing to increase the money spent towards these types of on-site services that respond to accidents," Moreno said, "The problem is, we can't seem to get the city to put out a contract to bid this out for enhanced services."
Moreno said the council doesn't put out contracts. That's why they're calling on the City and NOPD to do so.
The Mayor's Office told Eyewitness News on Wednesday that this request would go through NOPD.
According to OSS CEO, Ethan Cheramie, the company is in expansion discussions with NOPD.
OSS can take reports and gather information about wrecks, but they leave writing citations to the police.
Moreno said that OSS could even respond to non-injury accidents on the interstate.
"Those are saved manpower hours, but once again, screaming into a void, screaming into the wall, we're not seeing the urgency around getting these solutions done," Moreno said.
According to NOPD, OSS is handling crashes in Orleans Parish Monday through Friday.
Cheramie told Eyewitness News that they operate two cars daily in New Orleans.
NOPD said the majority, if not all, of the agents are former NOPD officers.
New Orleanian and musician, Theo Dureau, shared photos of a wreck with Eyewitness News after two cars collided near Elysian Fields and N. Galvez on the Fourth of July.
Dureau said that it took more than five hours for NOPD to respond.
On the Eyewitness Morning News on Tuesday, City Council VP, JP Morrell, said he was familiar with the incident.
"They're calling for help and there's no one to respond because when you pull that many officers from all the districts through the quarter, the rest of the city is less safe," Morrell said, "But the tourists are."
While NOPD struggles with staffing shortages, council members say OSS expansion is one way to fill the gap.