NNC approves funding to look for new vehicle fleet

North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) has green-lit the start of a procurement process for a new fleet of vehicles, despite acknowledging backlash received about the plans on social media.

According to NNC, the current owned fleet is not expected to be suitable for service provision far beyond September 2027 and it is anticipated that continued maintenance costs will increase budget pressures. It has put in place plans to go forward with a procurement process for 340 replacement vehicles to ensure a smooth transition past this date.

Referencing previous media coverage of the fleet replacement plans ahead of the decision, NNC Leader Martin Griffiths said at the executive meeting on Tuesday (November 11): “I can never work out which stories and which reports take off on social media and this one actually did.

“There was even suggestions that our maintenance team and our housing team should use bikes. I dread to think what would happen if you were moving seven pieces of skirting board or a bath from Kettering to Warmington – and bear in mind we have 400 square miles to cover.

“Sometimes you get some strange feedback on social media.”

NNC says the 340-strong fleet, made up of 247 leased and 93 owned vehicles, including cars, 4×4, vans, minibuses, sweepers and Refuse Collection Vehicles. They provide services such as bulky waste collection, housing repairs, facilities management, parking management, tree works and refuse collection. 

The council’s executive chose to approve the procurement of Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) powered vehicles over electric vehicles, as they say it currently provides the best value for money when compared with the infrastructure required and upfront costs for EVs.

It added that the use of hydrogenated vegetable oil (HVO) provides a suitable medium-term reduction in carbon emissions from day-to-day use.

However, North Northants resident and former Labour unitary councillor Lyn Buckingham who was present at the meeting said a full fleet rationalisation was needed to check if all vehicles were needed and also raised concerns about the administration not exploring options for EVs.

She said: “Let’s call this what this is – the biggest single operational renewal the council will undertake before 2027, and the one that will decide whether the bins get empty, the housing repairs get done and the streets stay clean.

“Value for money isn’t just about the cheapest van, it’s about the sustainability of the budget behind it. Otherwise, we’ll be back here in 2030 having the same debate only with higher prices and stricter emission rules.”

NNC estimated that the capital costs for installing charging infrastructure for EVs across the county would amount to £3.1m, whereas estimated costs for the installation of an additional HVO fuel storage tank would be just £60,000.

After that, the annual running costs for electric vehicles would be £477,675 compared to £1.2m for ICE vehicles – resulting in a £5m difference over seven years.

However, Cllr Ken Harrington, executive member for assets, waste and environmental services, said: “We will not forget our environmental ambitions and responsibilities. In fact, we remain committed to reducing our carbon footprint where it’s financially viable.

“The only credible and overall cost-effective way forward is such that we use leasing and we also use the fuel that we have in stock. Electric vehicles at present would prove to be too expensive.”

A further report will be brought to the executive in the future detailing the

findings of first stage of the procurement process and an update on the future NNC fleet.