Four new electric HGVs have come on stream to support the city’s refuse and recycling service.
The council is also investing in ground-breaking electric vehicle charging facilities at Hollingdean depot. The site’s new infrastructure is a first for an HGV fleet in the southeast and an industry standard setter.
A top-loading truck for glass recycling collections will be taking to the streets along with 3 refuse collection vehicles (RCVs) that can be used for either refuse or recycling rounds. They join an electric side loading RCV for communal bins, which came into service last month.
Adding resilience to the service
We have also just taken delivery of 2 more electric communal refuse vehicles to replace trucks that have reached the end of their lives. The existing communal bin vehicles are some of the oldest in the fleet, meaning they are among the least reliable and produce some of the worst emissions.
The new electric vehicles will add greater resilience to the communal rounds, which have seen significant service disruption due to vehicle issues. These vehicles will enter service in the next month once their registration is complete.
Two more electric RCVs are also on their way and will be used for refuse collections.
Saving money and emissions
One electric RCV helps to save around £22,000 a year in fuel. Vehicle maintenance costs and downtime are expected to decrease by up to 75% as the new RCVs are connected via SIM to the manufacturer, Terberg/Ros Roca, which can run diagnostics and repair remotely.
Electric vehicles produce no emissions, with a single side-loading electric RCV expected to save around 2.6 tonnes of carbon emissions per year – equivalent to nearly 7 return flights from Gatwick to Barcelona.
It will also mean there is more truck availability when others are off the road being repaired or serviced.
Improving service delivery
Councillor Tim Rowkins, Cabinet Member for Net Zero and Environmental Services, said: “These new electric vehicles are helping to improve service delivery for residents across Brighton & Hove and will contribute to cleaner air as they travel around the city.
“The new state of the art charging facilities are another game-changer, setting the service up for a positive future, saving money on fuel and making an important contribution to reducing emissions – approximately 640,000 tonnes a year – from the council’s fleet.”
Better air quality and cleaner transport
One council refuse truck covers around 220 kilometres in a week, which means the electric vehicles will make a considerable impact on reducing emissions from their journeys around the city.
Councillor Trevor Muten, Cabinet Member for Transport, Parking and Public Realm, said: “The new infrastructure and electric vehicles are an important part of our commitment to improving air quality and improving the health and wellbeing of residents.
“It’s part of our strategic approach for cleaner transport, for example plans for hundreds more EV charging points for residents and visitors and cheaper charging for EV vehicles. It also complements the recent successful bid with Brighton & Hove Buses for zero emissions buses.”
There are now 72 electric vehicles in operation across the council, with another two coming in September. These new vehicles have replaced 3 of our current communal refuse vehicles, 4 domestic refuse vehicles, 1 communal glass collection vehicle and lots of cars and vans!
Improving air quality is one of the key actions in our council plan. Replacing old diesel vehicles with a zero emissions fleet is a vital part of this. Diesel emissions contain tiny particulate matter and are an important contributor to poor air quality.