Worcester council’s street cleaning department goes electric

Two new electric vans have been brought in to help keep Worcester’s streets looking clean.

The new vehicles, sporting colourful designs announcing they are “Electric-powered for a cleaner city”, have replaced old diesel vans and are used by the City Council’s street cleaning department.

Councillor Joy Squires, Chair of the City Council’s Environment Committee, said: “The diesel vans we were using were over 14 years old and were really showing their age. With all the issues around pollution from diesel vehicles, we felt going fully electric was the right approach to keeping our city clean.”

The vans are being used by the Council’s two street cleansing teams – the City Centre team and the Neighbourhood Team, which looks after street cleaning in Worcester’s residential areas.

The two new vans have a range of 106 miles, so two electric charging points have been installed at the Council’s Warndon depot and another at the Guildhall. With two rapid charge points already in place at St Martin’s Gate car park, that means the vehicles will never be more than a few miles from the nearest charging point.