((PIC 1))
Two of Gateshead Council’s new road sweeping vehicles keep a Gateshead street free from litter.
A new million pound mechanised army was being put through its paces today as it prepares to take on the challenge of keeping Gateshead clean and green.
Gateshead Council today unveiled a £1m investment that will keep the streets and public places of Gateshead as clean as ever. A total of fifteen new mechanical road sweeping vehicles will become a familiar sight right across Gateshead as they roam the borough sweeping up litter.
The new machines, acquired from Johnston Sweepers, represent the latest technology in street cleaning and will help Gateshead Council keep the streets and public spaces of Gateshead a clean and pleasant place to be.
“The people of Gateshead value clean streets very highly and this investment will allow us to continue to keep the streets and public spaces of Gateshead free from rubbish.” Said Gateshead Council cabinet member for the environment Cllr Michael McNestry. “The skyline of Gateshead has changed dramatically in recent years but all that hard work would be hugely diminished if we didn’t work as hard as we do to keep things spic and span down here at street level.”
The 15 new vehicles, consisting of 12 compact sweepers, one mid-sized sweeper and two truck mounted sweepers. The small vehicles have been specifically modified for Gateshead to meet the latest European legislation on vehicle weights.
Even the smallest of these new vehicles will have increased capacity to collect litter and can sweep at up to 10mph and travel at speeds in excess of 30mph to jobs. All of the vehicles also come with the latest technology to ensure that they cause the minimum of pollution, noise and dust.
One of the men who will be in charge of the new machines is David Elliott said: “I’m over the moon with this new sweeper, it’s faster to get to the job, it can hold more and its easier to use.”