West Sussex County Council is to spend £4.8m on 12 appliances for its fire-fighting fleet.
The money, which will be taken from the fleet capital budget, was approved by Duncan Crow, cabinet member for community support, fire & rescue, on Friday (February 20).
It will be spent on 12 pumping appliances, replacing 12 of the oldest vehicles in the 48-strong fleet, one of which is 22 years old and two of which are 18 years old.
A report from Chief Fire Officer Gary Ball, said the replacements would reap a number of benefits.
They include: improved vehicle and fire-fighting technology, introducing a clean-cab concept that reduces firefighters’ exposure to contaminants, meeting higher Euro 6 emission standards, reducing maintenance costs, reducing the risk of engines failing, and supporting the council’s Net Carbon. Neutral 2030 goals.
The report added: “A well-managed replacement programme is essential as older vehicles require higher maintenance costs and present higher incidents of defects and failure rates, which presents an operational risk when responding to emergency incidents.
“New vehicles will be to current standards, ultimately having lower fuel consumption costs and lower incidences of defect repair costs, and with manufacturers warranties, these will contribute to cost efficiencies but will not in their own right be cost savings.”
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