The move was confirmed last Friday and has been detailed in a decision report from the council’s Strategic Director of Finance and Resources.

According to the report, the 2024/25 fleet replacement programme will see that the local authority procures two new refuse collection vehicles, six diesel vans, one electric van, two small tippers and one traffic management vehicle.

Including the electric van, the two diesel vans and two minivans already acquired by the council, the total cost of the move amounts to £1,079,000.

Sourced from suppliers Dennis Eagle and Ciceley Commercials, the new vehicles will support the council in delivering the key services that its ‘ageing fleet’ cannot achieve as efficiently.

The report warned that ‘failure to procure’ may have a ‘detrimental impact’, due to the council’s current vehicles becoming ‘more unreliable and out of action for longer periods of time’.

‘An ageing fleet also impacts on the Council’s ability to reduce carbon emissions in line with our climate emergency action plan’, it reads.

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