Michelin tyre move gives benefits for ambulance fleet

South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) has fitted its 500-strong fleet of ambulances with all-season Michelin Agilis CrossClimate tyres – and is reporting extra safety benefits and longevity as a result.

Serving the counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire and Oxfordshire, the service has moved its ambulances – comprising mostly Mercedes-Benz Sprinters and Fiat Ducatos – to the new tyres following testing at MIRA’s proving ground in Warwickshire.

Nick Roberts, fleet operations manager, said:

Safety is of paramount importance to us. While the previous Agilis 3 tyres performed well, Michelin-recommended testing revealed that the handling and performance of the ambulances, particularly in wet and adverse weather conditions, was superior on the Agilis CrossClimate tyre.

SCAS is also specifying Michelin CrossClimate 2 tyres for its rapid response vehicles, which are comprised largely of marked Skoda Superb cars. Roberts says the new generation of electric vehicles that recently joined the fleet – 10 Tesla Model Ys and 9 Kia EV6s – will also be moved on to the all-season CrossClimate 2 product.

He said:

We are already witnessing the safety benefits and exceptional longevity of the new tyres and we expect to see further advantages, including improved fuel economy, over a longer period of time. We might be paying a little more per tyre, but you can’t put a figure on safety and year-round mobility. They’re outstanding tyres. I would struggle to find another family of products that come close.

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