North Herts Council and East Herts District Council said the deal marked the extension of a successful partnership that began in 2018.

The new contract starts next May, replacing the councils’ current agreement with Urbaser UK.

It will see the authorities operate a new fleet, with vehicles that are 3.5t or under becoming zero emission.

The councils said they would work with Veolia to introduce ‘significant’ changes to waste and recycling services in 2025, including a new three-weekly collection cycle.

Executive member for recycling and waste at East Herts, Tim Hoskin, said: ‘This new contract and service design gives residents the opportunity to recycle more materials and help the councils in their long-term ambitions to improve the environmental sustainability of services.

‘As a result, we hope to see improvements in recycling performance over the coming years.’

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