Australia’s first electric rubbish trucks have made their debut in the streets of Casey.
The fleet, from WM Waste Management Services, are part of a new waste contract.
The trucks are powered solely by battery power and have a charge of up to five hours before needing to be recharged.
One truck has already hit the road with two more to follow in the coming weeks.
Casey Council is the first local council in Victoria to put 100 per cent electric hard waste collection trucks into its rubbish collection service.
WM Managing Director Mark Jeffs said that it was vital that essential services lead the way in going carbon neutral.
“Electric trucks are a key demonstration of our support for renewable energy as they significantly reduce our environmental footprint and improve the sustainability of residential hard waste collection,” he said.
“The equal winners here are ratepayers in Casey as the trucks will leave them with cleaner air.
“They are much quieter than diesel or petrol vehicles and they will reduce annual fuel and running costs as they require less maintenance and last longer than normal trucks,” Mr Jeffs said.
“It might mean a few extra minutes of shut-eye for residents who are usually woken by the roar of a rubbish truck doing its rounds.
“I am proud to bring electric trucks to the streets of Melbourne and I congratulate the City of Casey on this significant commitment,” he said.
Casey Mayor Amanda Stapledon said: “this is a terrific breakthrough in technology that will mean locals have a more sustainable hard waste collection with less noise, making their streets more liveable.”
Each electric truckload of waste is expected to save about 180kg of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
