THE COUNCIL is set to become the first in the country to use new zero-emissions street-cleansing machines to spray disinfectant on the streets.

Cheshire West and Chester Council will be the first council in the country to use two new zero emissions street-cleansing machines to spray disinfectant on streets in the borough.

Cheshire West and Chester Council's StreetCare team will be using the dymanic duo, which are fully-electric, to clean streets with high pressure water and disinfectant during the current coronavirus pandemic.

The new vehicles do not use hydraulics to operate, so are quieter, as well as being much lighter and easier to operate; they also need less servicing.

The machines spray high pressure water through a bar at the front and can have disinfectants mixed in with the water from on-board chemical tanks.

The machines also have a high pressure hand lance so staff can wash down and disinfect street furniture and bins.

Councillor Karen Shore, the council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for environment, highways and strategic transport, said: “These new electric street-cleansing machines will be used across the borough to spray disinfectant around our streets and town centres, removing ingrained dirt from pavement surfaces.

"They are a valuable addition to our teams, as we continue to keep our streets clean during the current coronavirus pandemic.

“Using the new machines means our C02 emissions will also be reduced and we can carry out more timely and targeted responses to street washing issues.

“We believe we are one of the first councils in the country to use this technology.”