Australia’s first fully electric rubbish trucks begin collections in Victoria

The Driven

The first fully electric rubbish trucks to hit the streets in Australia have done so this week in Melbourne’s outer south east council, the City of Casey.

The 100% electric rubbish trucks, which have been developed by waste collection equipment maker SuperiorPak in collaboration with La Trobe-based electric truckmaker SEA Electric, will do the rounds in the streets of Casey, and are the first such trucks to be designed and made in Australia.

According to WM Waste Management Service‘s managing director Mark Jeffs, the electric hard waste collection trucks are a “triple win” for Casey: they are cleaner, cheaper and quieter than their diesel predecessors.

“Obviously 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,” Jeffs said in a note by email.

“But 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 are require less maintenance and last longer than normal trucks.

“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,” said Jeffs.

To read the full story on RenewEconomy’s electric vehicle dedicated site, The Driven, click here…