The East Midlands is a busy, densely populated area of the UK — but it also includes the Peak District and some of England’s most demanding rural areas,  where severe weather, snow and a network of unclassified roads can make access difficult for regular ambulances in winter.

To address this problem, Volkswagen has worked with the East Midlands Ambulance Service to create a one-off off-road ambulance, based on VW’s Amarok pick-up.

The Volkswagen Group Emergency Services team designed and commissioned the build of the new response vehicle.

In addition to all the usual Amarok standard features, such as 4MOTION four-wheel drive and the ability to drive through water up to 500mm deep, the one-off ambulance is equipped with life-saving medical equipment and a load area designed to allow safe transportation of patients.

Commenting on the project, Chris Black, Head of Fleet at Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles UK, said:

“Our Volkswagen Group Emergency Services team worked hand-in-hand with the client to develop a unique vehicle including securing all of the necessary type approval. Now in service, the vehicle is already beginning to receive a great deal of interest and I am sure that we can expect to see similar Amarok ambulances in the future.”

I suspect there will be more demand — even the most remote parts of the Peak District are no more difficult to access than a number of other rural areas of the UK, so if the Amarok adds value here there’s a good chance that emergency service buyers in other areas might take a closer look.

Indeed, in a seperate release recently, I noticed that the NHS Highland Estates, the organisation responsible for looking after NHS facilities throughout the Scottish Highlands, recently took delivery of an Amarok pick-up and a VW Transporter 4MOTION. The Amarok ambulance could be an ideal addition to the Scottish Ambulance Service fleet.