Method and systems of improving the response of public safety personnel to or evacuation from a desired location are provided. In addition to path information obtained through traditional sources, information is used to determine the optimal route for emergency personnel to an emergency situation and for aiding emergency personnel to route people from the situation. The information may also be used to automatically prioritize vehicles and personnel to optimize response time. Further, the information may also be used to in situations in which it is advantageous for the vehicle or personnel to be tactically positioned in nearby locations rather than at the incident scene. Although the descriptions below will primarily focus on routes to a particular location, similar methods can be used for evacuations from the location. The optimal route may use historical information stored in a database local or remote to the dispatcher and/or real-time information updated during the emergency situation.