Sometime late morning or early afternoon on Monday, 911 calls for Alfred and Waterboro fire and rescue departments will be answered in Biddeford.

It is the beginning of a new relationship between the three agencies, designed, the fire chiefs of Alfred and Waterboro said, to provide better service for first responders, and in the long run, at lower the cost to taxpayers.

Both Waterboro Fire Chief Matthew Bors and Alfred Fire Chief David Lord said the public shouldn’t notice any difference. They said residents who call 911 for help should try and remain calm and answer specific questions from dispatchers, who pass the information on to those responding with aid.

Residents with home alarms or businesses with alarms should contact their individual alarm companies and provide them with a new contact number, the chiefs advised. Alarm companies can contact Biddeford Communications at 282-5127, said Bors and Lord in a joint statement.

Biddeford will transfer all calls for law enforcement from the two communities to the appropriate dispatch center: Sanford Regional Communications for York County Sheriff’s Office and the state’s public safety dispatch service in Gray for Maine State Police.

For the past couple of years, Alfred and Waterboro, along with a number of others communities, have had their public safety calls answered at Sanford Regional Communications Center.

Bors broached the idea of a move to Waterboro selectmen this spring after evaluating the current provider for the past several years. He said the agency looked at service levels and explored its options. Ultimately, the town chose to switch to the Biddeford agency.

Then, Alfred also decided to make the move.

The agencies have been testing their equipment for the last several days.

“Everything seems to be working fine,” said Lord.

Bors told Waterboro selectmen earlier this year the cost to stay with Sanford would be $7.82 per capita beginning July 1, with annual increases tied to the Consumer Price Index throughout the proposed five-year contract. He said Biddeford was offering a $7 per capita fee for the next two years. As well, both communities had to pay start-up costs for the move to Biddeford.

Sanford Regional Communications Center was established in 2008 when the county government’s regional communications center was disbanded and York County Sheriff’s Office began contracting the service from Sanford. A year later, many communities that had contracted their fire and rescue dispatching services from the county and later the Maine Department of Public Safety, including Waterboro and Alfred, made the move to Sanford. The Sanford center provides police, fire and rescue dispatching for Kennebunk, North Berwick and Old Orchard Beach ”“ though that seaside community will soon move to Scarborough for dispatching service. York County Sheriff’s Office remains with Sanford, but County Manager Greg Zinser is exploring options for future service.

Biddeford currently provides service to Goodwin’s Mills and Arundel fire departments, as well as to its own agencies. Deputy Police Chief JoAnne Fisk said the department has hired one new dispatcher, bringing the total to 14. Fisk said with Alfred and Waterboro added to their workload, the department has no plans to take on dispatching services for additional communities.

“We’re looking forward to working with the two towns and serving the citizens,” she said.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or twells@journaltribune.com.