A new, smaller garbage truck is going to cost Port Moody some big bucks.
On Tuesday, Nov. 21, council's finance committee approved an additional $155,000 to pay for the truck that was originally budgeted to cost $270,000.
In a report, Paul LeBlanc, Port Moody's manager of solid waste, fleet and shared services, said the more compact Class 6 truck was one of two new waste collection vehicles that were approved for purchase back in 2021.
A full-size Mack LR is expected to be delivered in the coming weeks, but the smaller truck wasn't available for order until mid-2022 when its cost had already risen by $30,000.
LeBlanc said since then further increases along with supply chain issues have made the truck even more expensive.
"Staff are not able to place an order for the truck without sufficient approved budget," he said.
Jeff Moi, Port Moody's general manager of engineering and operations, said the new truck's compact size will allow it to get into areas where roads might be narrower and turns are tighter, such as some multi-family townhouse developments.
"It's often quite challenging to get our trucks in," he said, adding some of those developments now have to roll their carts out to the street or use a private contractor to collect their waste.
As well, the new truck will offer several safety and efficiency benefits like a stand-up right-hand drive so the operator doesn't have to exit the cab into traffic and a higher volume capacity so it doesn’t have to be unloaded so frequently.
The additional money will come from the city's equipment replacement reserve fund.
