The decision was approved in a meeting last Thursday, which saw the council’s Executive agree to authorise the council’s spending of its capital reserves to purchase 57 replacement vehicles.

A report to the Executive revealed that 22 of the vehicles on order were ‘subject to Emergency Section 151 officer approval for the release of capital as they were urgently required by services’.

The report reads: ‘The £5m capital investment is significant. However, to provide context for this investment it should be noted that the cost of vehicles is considerable especially the large vehicles that are essential for key services such as waste collection.’

According to the document, roughly 200 of the local authority’s fleet assets have currently reached or exceeded their ‘recommended seven-year maximum lifespan’, with 70 of the vehicles being at least 10 years old.

Citing the higher maintenance costs and operational downtime associated with older vehicles, the report emphasises the ‘economically advantageous’ nature of the decision, which is expected to have a positive impact on strained service budgets.

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