TWO new state-of-the-art ambulances recently unveiled at Exmouth will finally go on the road this weekend around six weeks after they were delivered.

TWO new state-of-the-art ambulances recently unveiled at Exmouth will finally go on the road this weekend around six weeks after they were delivered.

The Liverton Business Park ambulance station took stock of the Mercedes vehicles, costing around �300,000, more than a month ago but they remained on-site because the staff had not been trained to use the equipment.

The first of the two ambulances, which replace the old Renault vehicles, was operational at the start of this month and the other is expected to be on the road this weekend.

A South Western Ambulance Service Trust spokesman said: "One of them has been on the road for a while and the other should be on the road by this weekend.

"The staff had to be familiarised with the equipment for the safety of the public, and the staff themselves.

"They are very state-of-the-art with new equipment."

The new custom-built vehicles, which comply with European safety standards, boast ECG scanners for heart patients, hydraulic ramps for easier loading and infection control wipe-down surfaces.

Staff input was crucial when designing the new ambulances, the trust said.

The new vehicles come at a time it was revealed South Western Ambulance Service was the country's top performer.