IT'S official - yellow is the new white. The first of a new generation of bright yellow ambulances has been unveiled by Hampshire Ambulance Service.

Four new Mercedes specialist transfer ambulances are the start of a multi-million pound vehicle replacement programme to upgrade the entire fleet by 2008.

Costing around £130,000 each, the eye-catching new vehicles will be hitting the streets of Hampshire in the next few months.

As specialist "dual purpose" ambulances, they will be used for moving critical care patients between hospitals and undertaking routine ambulance journeys.

It is planned that eventually all emergency ambulances will be replaced as part of the programme.

The new fleet of approximately 70 vehicles will be fitted with tail-lifts to help patients on and off the ambulance and to reduce potential lifting and handling injuries to staff.

They will be equipped with up-to-the-minute technology, including the ability to electronically send vital patient information directly to hospitals from the scene of an incident.

All new emergency ambulances will come in a European-style bright yellow shade designed to make them more visible.

Rob Ellery, head of support services at Hampshire Ambulance Trust, said: "The first four specialist ambulances, which will be based in Portsmouth, Southamp-ton, Winchester and Basingstoke are planned to be on the road within a matter of months.

"All of the new vehicles will be the European standard bright yellow, which improves safety for crews and members of the public because they can hardly be ignored in a queue of traffic. Research has shown that the human eye gives measurable responses when looking at different colours. In this research, yellow was identified as giving the highest human eye response, and has therefore been voted by ambulance leaders as the universal colour to adopt."

Hampshire Ambulance bosses have already bid for £3.8m from the NHS to fund the upgrade, but talks are still on going to ascertain when the money will be made available.

The fleet could be bought or leased, depending on the assessment of best value for money.