5 days Ago
Bin wagon drivers have been taking to the road to test out the new electric vehicles as part of a trial. Workers from teams across the council have spent the last three months trying out a variety of electric vehicles – one refuse collection vehicle, plus one large, three medium and two small vans. Bolton Council workers who have been test driving the new electric vehicles say they are clean, quiet and practical.
Mercedes, Renault, Vauxhall and Peugeot loaned vehicles to the council for free so that staff could experience the new technology. Recent improvements in range and performance mean the vehicles have been welcomed as convenient and pleasant to drive. Read more: Marathon man Christian set for a busy weekend Read more: 'Do we actually know what we own?' Council website wrongly lists land it owns Read more: 'Simple mistake' forced Bolton Council to borrow £25M short term loan Staff say they are well suited to the stop-start nature of their work around the borough, like emptying street bins, road sweeping and maintaining parks and green spaces.
The electric bin wagon was also popular for being much quieter to operate for staff and residents. The vehicle trials come as the council eyes the need to modernise its fleet of about 250 vehicles away from petrol and diesel in the coming years. This is because government rules mean that sales of new petrol and diesel cars , vans and lorries will end in 2035.
The council’s executive member for climate change and environment, Cllr Richard Silvester, said: “With transport being the biggest source of greenhouse gases in the UK, at about 29 per cent, it’s vital that councils not only reduce the size of their fleets, but also plan ahead for the switch to low and zero emission vehicles. “Even at this early stage, we wanted to give staff a chance to try out and get used to these new vehicles because their feedback will be vital to our planning. “We asked them what they thought of the vehicles and I’m pleased to say that the response has been overwhelmingly positive.
”.
