We’re putting electric to the test for future generations

Our Emergency Ambulance Service plays a vital role in serving 97% of Aotearoa New Zealand, improving health outcomes for communities every day. One of our organisational strategic aims is building sustainability for future generations. This means taking responsibility to tiaki care for the environment while delivering essential care to our communities.

As part of this commitment, we’re trialling Australasia’s first electric emergency ambulance to see if an EV ambulance could be a viable solution to help reduce our emissions and integrate sustainable practices into the care we provide. Supported by our long-standing Major Sponsor, ASB, this groundbreaking trial is based in Hamilton in the mighty Waikato.

Real-world testing for a sustainable future

The trial involves real-world testing by our ambulance officers. Insights will help us understand if and how an electric vehicle (EV) emergency ambulance service could operate in Aotearoa New Zealand. Some of the questions we are asking are:

Will our ambulance officers feel confident about the vehicle's reliability and technology in an emergency?
Can the vehicle’s battery and power endure when we put it through its paces across typical distances and terrain our ambulance officers encounter in a shift?
What benefits from an environmental perspective and cost savings will we see from an EV emergency ambulance versus a traditional emergency ambulance?

Currently, we are seeing positive results from the above questions

Looking at the distance the EV ambulance travels, and range anxiety associated with EV vehicles, we are seeing impressive results. The EV emergency ambulance is finishing a typical 12-hour shift in the Hamilton area with enough battery remaining, to be able to go directly into a night shift.

The EV ambulance has travelled close to 8000km since launch. As our electricity comes from Meridian (100% renewable) the emissions associated with charging is 0kg CO2e. This means when compared to our standard ambulances we have prevented an estimated 2400kg CO2e just from this one vehicle, which is great for the environment.

Looking at running costs, we are seeing on average, the EV emergency ambulance costing half of what is costs to run a standard ambulance.

What our people think of the EV emergency ambulance is important to us. It’s their office for the duration of their shift, so we want to make sure they are confident and have trust in it. We have seen staff easily adapt to the range-limited vehicle, with the most significant changes in mindset coming from the different internal layouts compared to a standard ambulance.

Thank you ASB

A heartfelt thank-you to ASB, our long-standing Major Sponsor, for supporting this initiative and helping us lead the way in sustainability for Aotearoa New Zealand.

See the launch of the new EV emergency ambulance and hear from those involved

Watch the video below to hear from our ambulance officers and others involved in this pioneering project, captured during the launch of the EV emergency ambulance in Ngāruawāhia.

We’re excited to share this journey with Kiwis and invite you to follow along as we learn, adapt, and innovate.

Questions?

If you have any questions about this trial, check out some helpful FAQs below. For more details, you can also read the media release from the launch.

All your questions about our EV ambulance answered here

What's an EV?

‘EV’ stands for electric vehicle. EVs are plug-in vehicles powered at least partly by electricity. This includes battery electric vehicles, (BEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). The term ‘EV” doesn’t just cover cars – heavy transport, marine transport, planes, scooters, bicycles and motorcycles can all be powered by electric motors!

EVs are rapidly gaining popularity because they have a myriad of advantages in comparison to internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs).

Some of the reasons to consider switching to EVs include

The vehicle’s life cycle contributes less CO2 emissions than ICEVs
No clutch or gears allow EVs to accelerate smoothly and quickly
Because they have fewer moving parts there’s less things to go wrong and therefore less ongoing maintenance costs
Cheaper to run than petrol or diesel.

Why trial an EV as an emergency ambulance??

We know EVs are being used by emergency services in other parts of the world, but we don’t know if it’s something that can work here in Aotearoa New Zealand given our geographic location and spread-out communities. We need to do a trial to see if it is possible before we commit to investing any further in these vehicles.

We also want to do this because this project aligns to our Manaaki Ora Strategy’s strategic aim of building sustainability for future generations.

We also see first-hand the impact of climate change on communities. For example, Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 had a disastrous impact on areas with vulnerable infrastructure, isolating communities and further compromising already existing challenges to accessing health services. It’s our duty to mitigate and adapt to climate change to improve wellbeing outcomes and build resilience – particularly in times of crises.

Where and how will it be trailed?

It made sense for us to base the trial in Hamilton where the vehicle has been fitted out by Action Manufacturing and where we have also been provided EV charging infrastructure thanks to YHI and Siemens. We also know EVs are generally more suited to urban areas.

The trial will test the vehicle’s performance potential and whether EVs might be successfully introduced into our wider fleet.

What happens if it runs out of battery while responding to an incident or transporting a patient?

Patient safety is our number one priority. While we’re confident the EV will meet its expected range capabilities or performance during the trial, contingencies are in place to mitigate any risks that may arise that could compromise our efficiencies or patient care.

This includes only trialing the vehicle in an urban area on a 12-hour day shift, during which, we will always have a backup ambulance on stand-by to cover if something were to happen.

However, also noting that any vehicle we operate has the potential for something to go wrong, which is why we always do our best to minimise any chance of this occurring.

How is it being funded at a time when you are focusing on financial mitigation?

ASB has given us $291,000 to the EV trial project. We couldn’t do it without them. This money was allocated in 2022, specifically for this project. It does not relate to the current EAS budget deficit.

What’s the environmental impact of an EV battery over its life cycle, some say it’s worse than fossil fuels?

Advances in EV battery technology is enabling production of more environmentally sustainable battery chemistry and longer lasting batteries that do not degrade and lose capacity at the rate earlier EV batteries did.

The NZ Battery Industry Group is also taking an active role in developing guidelines and policy in the areas of battery traceability, reuse and recycling.

We are committed to ensuring it will take an ethical and environmental approach to disposal of any of its existing and future EV vehicle batteries when required.

What kind of vehicle is it and why did you choose that?

A lot of consideration has been put into selecting the model of EV for this trial.

We reviewed a range of EVs and the Ford E-Transit met more of the requirements for an operational vehicle with the ambulance service. It was the best fit for our mahi.

How fast can it go and what are the performance specs?

It can go from 0 to 100km/hour in 9.3 seconds – making it the fastest van in Australasia. With no gears, it exerts full power as soon as you accelerate. EVs are great hill climbers and regenerative braking means they can recharge as you drive.

Its battery range is up to 250km. However, this is the part we’re looking to test because range is very dependent on how the vehicle is driven and its load.

We will be evaluating all of this as we move through the trial. Drivers will also have undertaken specific EV driver training because these vehicles generate much more torque and an internal combustion engine, which enables impressive acceleration, maneuvering and driving responsiveness. The additional weight and position of the electric batter means a lower centre of gravity and excellent weight balance.

How reliable is it?

Its reliability is something we’re going to be putting to the test in the trial but because EVs have fewer parts to maintain they are generally very reliable and cheaper to maintain for the overall life of the vehicle. Routine servicing costs are reported to be half of an equivalent diesel-powered Ford transit.

What distance can it travel?

Our metropolitan ambulances travel about 180km per shift so while we will need to test the EVs distance capabilities, we are confident it won’t run out of charge on shift and have allowed for a backup ambulance in the event something unexpected occurred.

In general, most EV cars typically have a 400km range in urban areas. We know the EV ambulance is likely to be less because of the weight of the vehicle with its high-tech medical equipment and patient load, as well as how fast it will be driven responding to an emergency.

How long does it take to charge?

Charging times depend on where you plug it in. The chargers installed at our HHSJ site in Hamilton will charge the vehicle in about two hours. If charged at a hyper-charger, it can take as little as 30 to 40 minutes.

How much does an EV ambulance cost to run?

We’re yet to find out exact costs but expect it to be considerably less than our fossil-fueled ambulances.

If it’s successful, how do you plan to fund more EVs especially given current budget constraints?

While current economic times are uncertain, we still need to deliver an emergency ambulance service and look at the best ways we can do this for our patients and our environment. We would be negligent if we didn’t continue our mahi towards achieving our sustainability goals.

However, we know that this may take time and we are open to exploring a range of funding streams to support this mahi.

What happens if the trial fails?

We’re confident this will be a successful exercise regardless of the outcome. The learnings we gather will be invaluable in terms of what is needed to consider when sourcing vehicles in the future.

If we find this EV ambulance isn’t suitable for responding to emergencies on the frontline, we will look to repurpose it to other parts of our fleet such as into a Patient Transfer Ambulance or Health Shuttle.