New fleet of vehicles to run on compressed natural gas
The ten recycling and waste collection lorries will run on compressed natural gas (CNG). The new vehicles will help improve Sheffield’s carbon footprint and will support the Council’s new recycling and collection service which is currently being rolled out across the city.
A CNG vehicle produces 20% less CO2 than a vehicle that is powered by traditional fossil-based fuels. Although CNG vehicles have been available for a number of years, the technology at the time was not fully developed.
Today the technology is well established, especially in the design of the Mercedes Econic CNG vehicle which offers the standard low entry vehicle along with proven gas technology that has been extensively adopted within mainland Europe.
The future of CNG in the UK is highly dependent on the local and national infrastructure and the quality of mains gas. To deliver the required service for Sheffield County Council, Veolia has initially installed a temporary Liquid Compressed Natural Gas (LCNG) gas station which will be tankered in directly to Sheffield in a liquid form.
Tom Spaul, Chief Operating Officer at Veolia Environmental Services said: “We have worked closely with Sheffield City Council to introduce an advanced vehicle fleet that uses clean technology. By innovating and utilising new technologies that cut carbon emissions, we are helping Sheffield in their aspirational targets to become a greener city while still providing value for money for our customers.”
Council Leader, Councillor Paul Scriven has been keen for the Council to take the lead in testing alternative vehicle fuels in the city. He said: “We are committed to testing various green fuels to offer a practical alternative to petrol and diesel. By beginning to replace our fleet with these green vehicles we are showing our commitment to reducing Sheffield's carbon emissions. We have worked closely with Veolia to introduce gas-fuelled lorries into their fleet and we want to share our experience with other fleet operators, so I hope they will follow this positive lead.”
For further details about the alternative fuels visit www.SheffieldIsMyPlanet.co.uk/gasvehicles and for information on Veolia’s new fleet of lorries visit Veolia Sheffield.