Bicycles

Ebike ambulance hits the streets of Paris

Ebike ambulance hits the streets of Paris
Emergency Bikes are built upon an existing Urban Arrow cargo ebike
Emergency Bikes are built upon an existing Urban Arrow cargo ebike
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Emergency Bikes are built upon an existing Urban Arrow cargo ebike
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Emergency Bikes are built upon an existing Urban Arrow cargo ebike
According to their designers, Emergency Bikes can reach urban Paris locations approximately twice as fast as traditional ambulances
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According to their designers, Emergency Bikes can reach urban Paris locations approximately twice as fast as traditional ambulances
Emergency Bikes have an electric-assisted pedalling range of up to 160 km (99 miles)
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Emergency Bikes have an electric-assisted pedalling range of up to 160 km (99 miles)
Emergency Bikes are currently available "to any emergency service that is interested"
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Emergency Bikes are currently available "to any emergency service that is interested"
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Because bikes can skirt around traffic jams – and park just about anywhere – they're often faster than cars on congested city streets. That's why bicycle couriers exist, and it's also why the Emergency Bikes ebike ambulance was created.

The vehicle was designed by PR/tech development firm Wunderman Thompson Paris, in partnership with French electric mobility company Ecox Enterprises. Additional input was provided by UMP (Paris Emergency Services) and cargo bike manufacturer Urban Arrow, the latter of which provided the cargo ebike that serves as the base.

Added onto that bike is a 150-liter insulated storage box for medical supplies, a 140-decibel horn, a high-intensity flashing blue LED, medical symbols on the wheel covers, anti-puncture tires, a GPS unit that allows for location tracking, and a USB port for powering portable devices.

The bottom bracket motor is powered by two 500-Wh lithium batteries, reportedly providing an electric-assisted pedalling range of up to 160 km (99 miles). Hydraulic disc brakes give the bike plenty of stopping power.

According to their designers, Emergency Bikes can reach urban Paris locations approximately twice as fast as traditional ambulances
According to their designers, Emergency Bikes can reach urban Paris locations approximately twice as fast as traditional ambulances

A Wunderman Thompson representative tells us that Emergency Bikes are currently available "to any emergency service that is interested," and that several such groups have already requested bikes. In fact, a doctor who tested the prototype in Paris this summer has since bought the first production bike, and now uses it on a daily basis when responding to emergency calls within the city. Needless to say, conventional ambulances are still required for transporting patients to the hospital.

The bikes can be seen in action, in the following video.

Sources: Wunderman Thompson Paris, Ecox Enterprises via Bicitech

Emergency Bikes, the new city-proof medical vehicle

View gallery - 4 images
4 comments
4 comments
buzzclick
"Every year drivers spend 140 hours stuck in traffic jams". The figure is probably higher. If this emergency bike has to squeeze between cars often, then it seems too bulky. Put a backpack on the EMT, add more lights and lose much of the bulk.
michael_dowling
Ebike Ambulance is a misnomer. No room for the patient. I guess this is only useful for patients that don't need immediate ER treatment. If I was a gunshot victim,I would want to get to the nearest ER,not be given a bandage by a doctor on one of these things.
jerryd
A lot can be said for having everything in a trailer that turns into a patient transport pod as sometime speed back to the hospital is more important. And would handle better than all that weight high forward on the bike.
And nothing is faster in dense city traffic than an E moped at least in power or a full e MC. I've actually thought about this a lot having someone or 2 on a thin EV MC designed to ride between lanes of stopped, slow moving cars or the bike lane could get to me about 5 minutes faster than the lumbering expensive wasteful full firetruck they send.
ClaudioB
@michael_dowling "gunshot victim", really? do you live close to a war zone? we don't have so many of those in Europe (or in China, where I currently live), fortunately...