A TOTAL of £4 million has been spent on a new fleet of state-of-the-art rubbish trucks.

Over the coming months, a new fleet of recycling and rubbish collection vehicles will be heading in Colchester with the aim of delivering a more efficient service across the borough.

Colchester Council’s fleet of vehicles is due to be replaced and the council has bought new, more efficient replacement vehicles which include the latest technology such as an onboard 360 degree camera safety system for staff.

In total, the council will buy 26 new heavy goods vehicles over the next two years, costing £4 million.

It means each vehicle costs around £153,846.

The first 14 of these vehicles have now arrived and will be used across the borough this week with the remainder being delivered in stages over the coming year.

It supports the council’s drive to create a Better Colchester, a campaign supported by the Gazette.

Martin Goss (Lib Dem), who is the councillor responsible for waste and environment, said the new vehicles include the latest technology to keep the emissions as low as possible.

He said: “There are cameras so everything will be filmed. If someone pulls out in front of one of the vehicles or if it reverses into something, it’s all on video.

“There are as safe as they can be.

“These things take a battering in their daily lives and it’s important we replace them.

“We have also replaced the road sweepers in the town.

“These vehicles are as clean as they can be in terms of emissions.”

He added: “Investing in a new fleet of waste and recycling collection vehicles means we are investing for the long term.

“It also enables us to use the latest technology to deliver an even better service and provide enhanced safety and support to our staff whilst carrying out their work too.”

The manufacturer is Dennis Eagle, a company which has supplied innovative zero emission waste collection vehicles.

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