BUFFALO – A busy twelve-mile stretch of Interstate 45 between Dallas and Houston will soon have permanent ambulance service again.

Voters in Leon County approved the creation of an Emergency Services District on Saturday, which was the third time the issue was on the ballot.

The measure passed with 71 percent of the vote, Leon County Judge Byron Ryder said.

In April, after weeks of warning, Palestine pulled its ambulance out of Leon County. They were no longer able to offer the free service since they lost $240,000 a year for over a decade.

That left no emergency medical coverage for 208-square miles of Central Texas, including 12 to 15 miles of the heavily traveled I-45 almost directly between Dallas and Houston.

Citizens always wanted permanent ambulance service, but have long been at odds over how to pay for it.

Voters turned down previous ballot initiatives because new property taxes funded the EMS and property owners thought they shouldn't have to foot the bill alone.

Saturday, they changed their minds.

E-mail jwhitely@wfaa.com