Cot fastening system having a crash stable, cot fastener track and method of affixing an emergency cot thereto

A cot fastening system which fixes and holds within a transport vehicle an emergency cot having mounted thereon wheels, a first fixture and a second fixture, said cot fastening system comprising:

• a cot fastener track having a longitudinal length with opposite first and second ends, a pair of open side rails longitudinally extending between the first and second ends, and a channel centrally located between the open side rails, said open side rails being configured to align therewith, accommodate therein and guide together the first fixture of the cot along the longitudinal length of the cot fastener track towards the first end as the cot is rolled by the wheels within the vehicle and to retain the first fixture adjacent the first end at least vertically and laterally therein, and said channel being configured to accommodate therein and retain the second fixture adjacent the second end at least vertically and laterally therein;
• and
• a securing mechanism operably selectable between secure and unsecure conditions, in which said secure condition prevents both removal of the first fixture from the open side rails and removal of the second fixtures from the channel.