East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) is pleased to announce a trial of our first electric fast response vehicle (FRV) in the service which has been launched in Nottingham.
An electric BMW i3 has been delivered to Beechdale Ambulance Station to see if an electric FRV could be a permanent edition to our EMAS fleet.
The car will be based at Beechdale and a charging point has also been installed at Jubilee House in Arnold thanks to support from Gedling Borough Council.
Steve Farnsworth, EMAS Fleet General Manager, said: “This is exciting new technology for us which could eventually lead to us moving to a greener fleet, but we want to make sure it will work for us and help us provide the right care for our patients.
“The vehicle is quick off the mark and will be a nippy resource around the city centre.”
The vehicle can do up to 113 miles before needing to be recharged, although it also has a petrol tank which extends the range to 206 miles. It will mainly respond to life threatening calls in and around the city centre.
Greg Cox, EMAS General Manager for Nottinghamshire Division, is delighted that Nottingham had been chosen as the venue for the trial.
He said: “It’s an exciting opportunity and I am grateful that Nottingham has been given the chance to take part in the trial of this new innovation.
The car could not only prove to be a great tool for our staff, so they can continue to deliver patient care, but could also reduce our impact on the environment.”
Councillor David Ellis, Portfolio Holder for Public Protection, Gedling Borough Council said: “We are very proud to be supporting the East Midlands Ambulance Service with their extremely important work. We have been using clean technology in our vehicles for some time and for EMAS to be trialling something similar using our charging points is very exciting and we are sure it will be a great success.”