Road sweepers and wheelie-bin collectors are charging ahead with a fleet of nine new electric vehicles for Brent Council to go all out to become ‘carbon neutral’ by 2030.

The vehicles, charged up overnight at the depot and at street power-points, have been introduced to clean up the streets in one of London’s worst areas for rubbish dumping.

“Electric vehicles are key to our target of becoming carbon neutral,” Cllr Krupa Sheth said. “So we are installing charging points and switching over to an electric fleet where possible.”

The electric fleet being operated by the council’s cleansing contractors, Veolia, is said to be cleaner, quieter and above all greener for the environment. The vehicles are saving 50 tonnes of carbon dioxide or CO2 compared to the older diesel lorries, as well as being less noisy to operate.

Veolia’s Gisela Endres said: “We are exploring ways to reduce the impact of our operations on the environment. Upgrading to electric helps us work out the most efficient and cost-effective ways of operating sustainable services.”

Brent was one of the local authorities declaring a “climate emergency” in 2019 and has been “greening up” its operations since then, aiming to be carbon neutral within the next six years.

But it still faces illegal fly-tipping, with unwanted items being dumped on the streets.