[
Starting this Thursday, new quieter, greener and more efficient garbage trucks will be added to Lexington's Waste Management fleet.
11 new trucks powered by compressed natural gas as opposed to diesel fuel are part of the city’s truck replacement schedule and according to Tracy Thurman, Director of the Division of Waste Management, the savings will begin immediately. “We’re going to be gaining that savings over time with the fuel costs because fuel cost averages $1.50 to $2.00 cheaper than diesel right now”
And there will be other savings. "By using compressed natural gas, we are lowering emissions 20 to 30% compared to diesel. So over the life cycle of our trucks each year, we are saving $6,500 per unit just with fuel savings and maintenance scheduled"
Thurman said the new trucks are also less expensive to maintain. She added that as new vehicles are brought in to replace outdated trucks, they will begin to pay for themselves in money saved by the city for fuel and repair costs. “Your sweet spot’s about 40 to 42 units. So already the council has amped up the efforts and the Mayor has amped up the efforts in this. So our replacement schedule right now, we have the 11 units; we’ll have two more by December. And then the council and the Mayor budgeted another $2.9 million dollars in this fiscal year for replacement vehicles.”
The Division of Waste Management services 96-thousand homes and three-thousand businesses across Fayette County. Thurman said the new garbage trucks will be used on a rotating basis throughout all city neighborhoods.