Veolia to implement U.K.’s first electric refuse fleet

The City of London Corporation has awarded a new tech-driven waste collection, street cleansing and ancillary services contract to Veolia, headquartered in Aubervilliers, France.

As part of the contract, the corporation aims to become “the first authority in the U.K. to run a fully electric fleet of refuse collection vehicles (RCVs), according to a news release.

The vehicles, manufactured by Electra Commercial Vehicles, will be equipped with 360-degree camera and audible warning reversal systems to improve safety. The vehicles will also use on-board weighing equipment to digitally record bin weights at residential properties, enabling recycling performance to be efficiently calculated.

In addition, all vehicles will be digitally tracked to monitor tasks dependent on geographical location and capacity, according to the release.

The contract will deliver 74 solar auto-compacting BigBelly bins, which send notifications to collection crews when they are full. Veolia will manage waste and recycling collections within the city of London.

“This pioneering technology-driven contract aims to exceed the high standards people expect of our waste and cleansing services whether they work, visit or live in the city,” says Jeremy Simons, port health and environmental services committee chair, City of London Corporation.

Veolia U.K. and Ireland Executive Vice President Gavin Graveson says, “The new fleet of electric vehicles will play a significant role in improving local air quality, with real-time data technologies delivering greater synergies between collections and street cleansing operations. We look forward to working with the City Corporation to provide an efficient and reliable service, that enhances the lives of those living and working in the area, while providing a design for a more sustainable future.”

The electric vehicles will be implemented later this year, upon completion by Electra.