Dual purpose vehicles to fight flood and snow
Now businesses are back at work, procurement is underway for two multi-purpose vehicles that can clear out drainage channels during wet weather, and act as back-up for breakdowns or in extreme snowy weather in the winter.
As there are already two such vehicles in Argyll and Bute Council’s fleet, the two new vehicles, once purchased, will mean there will be one in each of the local authority’s four areas.
A programme of channel cleaning can then be set up and delivered over the year, mitigating weather-related damage and climate change.
An additional two drivers will be recruited, for up to two years, to focus on gully cleaning and drainage work.
Funds for the vehicles were allocated in the budget earlier in the year, members of the environment, development and infrastructure committee were reminded on Thursday September 10. However, during lockdown it was difficult to progress procurement as many of the suppliers had effectively closed.
Councillor Robin Currie, policy lead for housing, roads and infrastructure services, said: ‘The flexibility of these vehicles provides value for money for the council as well as the functionality we need. Being able to fit either gully cleaning or snow clearing equipment onto a single chassis means we can use them all year round.
‘Our overall aim is to do all we can to keep Argyll and Bute open for business despite the extreme weather we now experience – whether rain or snow.’