Thanet District Council has taken delivery of 11 new open-back waste collection vehicles with the aim of improving the efficiency of collections across the district.
The new vehicles have a load capacity of almost 10 tonnes compared with just over 6 tonnes for some of the fleet that they are replacing. This will reduce the frequency of trips to the disposal site and save time and mileage.
Last June Thanet council agreed to spend £2.2million on the new fleet.
From Monday, March 29, residents will have their mixed dry plastic recycling and paper/card recycling collected at different times of the day by separate crews.
There will be no changes to residents’ collection days.
Residents should leave their bins, boxes and bags out until 4pm as the new trucks may be collecting later in the day than usual.
Cllr Steve Albon, Cabinet Member for Operational Services at Thanet District Council said: “Our new fleet of waste collection vehicles can accommodate greatly increased loads compared to the previous split-back models that collected both waste and recycling at the same time.
“This will allow them to stay on the road longer before having to travel back to the transfer station so it is more efficient in terms of both time and fuel. Other benefits include reduced spillage and reduced maintenance costs.
“There will be no changes to resident’s collections days but we are asking people to keep their recycling out until 4pm before reporting a missed collection.”
The new vehicles are equipped with 360-degree camera systems and cyclist detection and warning technology. They are also rear steer which means they will be able to get into some of the more inaccessible roads. They are all open-back which improves resilience as the whole fleet is now interchangeable.
The roll-out of the new waste fleet coincides with the end of the existing vehicle’s economic life. These were bought in 2013 and can no longer be economically maintained. The expected lifespan of a refuse collection vehicle is about seven years due to the heavy nature of the work and type of load they carry.
