page_title: London Ambulance Service
section_title: Fleet
hierarchical_section_title: London Ambulance Service / Fleet
caption_attribution_description: English: London Ambulance Service Emergency Ambulance
context_page_description: The London Ambulance Service NHS Trust is an NHS trust responsible for operating ambulances and answering and responding to urgent and emergency medical situations within the London region of England. The service responds to 999 and 111 phone calls, providing triage and advice to enable an appropriate level of response.
  It is one of the busiest ambulance services in the world, and the busiest in the United Kingdom, providing care to more than 8.6 million people, who live and work in London. The service is currently under the leadership of chief executive Garrett Emmerson. The service employs around 5,300 staff.
  It is one of ten ambulance services trusts in England providing emergency medical services, and is part of the National Health Service, receiving direct government funding for its role. There is no charge to patients for use of the service, as every person in the UK has the right to the attendance of an ambulance in an emergency.
  The LAS responded to over 1.8 million calls for assistance, and over 1 million incidents in 2015/16. Incidents rose by 20,000 in 2015/16, putting more pressure on the service.
context_section_description: The LAS operates around 450 emergency ambulances. In addition it can deploy around 100 fast response units in various cars, motorcycles, or bicycles.
  Although not a part of the LAS, London's Air Ambulance can also be deployed by, and for, the LAS from its base at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel using either its ground RRVs or its helicopter.
  As well as accidents and emergencies, the LAS operates a 195-vehicle patient transport service (PTS). Previously a centrally funded service, this element of the LAS is now subject to an open market and is required to tender for work from primary care trusts (PCTs) and other NHS bodies. As well as being contracted by a number of London hospitals and PCTs to take patients to and from their pre-arranged hospital or clinic appointments, the PTS responds to ad-hoc journey requests and provides specialist transfer facilities.
  Mercedes-Benz Sprinters are used as frontline A&E ambulances, while Volkswagen Tiguans and Skoda Octavias cars are all used as Fast Response Units (FRU).
  Motorcycle responders are equipped with the BMW R1200RT.
  Cycle responders, who operate in areas such as the City of London, the West End, Stratford, Kingston Town Centre as well as Heathrow Airport, use custom built Rockhopper mountain bikes manufactured by Specialized Bicycle Components.
  LAS employs Fiat Ducatos for use in its non-emergency transport service.
  The Hazardous Area Response Team vehicles include 4x4 Mercedes-Benz Sprinters, VW Transporters, Volvo XC70s and Polaris All-Terrain Vehicle.
  Volunteer emergency responders use a mix of Volkswagen Tiguan and Volvo V50.
  As a part of the Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response strategy LAS also has a number of medium and heavy major incident response vehicles such as command vehicles and equipment vehicles on standby at all times around London, based on Mercedes-Benz Sprinters and IVECO trucks.
  In 2017 140 new Mercedes Sprinter ambulances are to be introduced and 60 new Volkswagen Tiguan to be incorporated into the fast response unit fleet.
caption: A 2015 registered LAS emergency ambulance
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