The new electric vehicles include 37 ambulances and 40 fast-response cars. The deployment increases the organisation’s fleet to 41 electric ambulances, 81 electric fast-response cars and three electric motorcycles, making it the UK’s largest fleet of fully electric ambulance vehicles.
London Ambulance Service (LAS) does not mention the make of the new EVs, but the press release shows a Ford Explorer. That is in line with previous orders, as LAS has partnered with Ford before. For example, the carmaker handed over 19 electric ambulances, based on the Ford Transit chassis, in 2022.
The new vehicles are being introduced throughout the summer alongside further investment in charging infrastructure. Last year, the ambulance service installed 288 EV charging points across 18 ambulance stations in London, with 27 per cent of its sites now fully equipped for charging. Charging infrastructure is scheduled to be available at all London Ambulance Service sites by 2028.
London Ambulance Service says the electric ambulances can complete a full 12-hour shift on a single charge. In addition to eliminating tailpipe emissions, the organisation expects operational benefits from the new vehicles, including lower running costs, reduced maintenance requirements and higher vehicle availability. The service states that maintenance-related downtime is reduced by 75 per cent compared with conventional vehicles.
