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The tradition of forgetful Lower Hutt residents rushing out their containers to the sound of a puffing diesel engine could soon be history.
Half of the city’s garbage truck fleet will be electric starting in July next year, and the last of the combustion fleet will be phased out by 2024.
The move is part of the new recycling and trash service funded by fees from the Hutt City Council.
David Howie, general manager of Waste Management, which received the contract to provide the services, said that electric trucks are the way of the future. The new vehicles were not only quiet, but also reduced emissions from the operation.
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Matthew Tso / Things
Lower Hutt’s new fleet of electric garbage trucks will hit the streets next year. The introduction will mean that 957 tons of carbon emissions will not be released from the equivalent number of vehicles powered by fossil fuels.
The new vehicles were related to the government’s goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050, he said.
“We have to stop relying on fossil fuels for transportation. Being able to show that we can do that for essential services is a big part of that. “
By introducing the initial fleet of 11 vehicles, the company could avoid emitting 957 tonnes of carbon per year, annual emissions equivalent to 473 cars, or transport 7,500 people from Wellington to Auckland.
While electric trucks cost up to twice as much as a diesel vehicle, savings would come through lower operating costs.
Lower Hutt would have one of the largest electric garbage collection fleets in the country, Howie said.
Mayor Campbell Barry campaigned for a modern waste management system during the local body elections last year, and electric trucks were the icing on the cake.
Matthew Tso / Things
David Howie, General Manager of Waste Management, said Lower Hutt’s zero-emission electric garbage trucks are the way of the future.
“It was a matter of underpromises and overdeliveries.
“By modernizing our garbage collection services along with our recycling changes and the new green waste service, we have created incentives for people to produce less waste.”
The fee-based system has proven controversial in some quarters, with opponents claiming it would create a monopoly and force several container supply companies to close.
