Harrogate Borough Council is continuing to tackle litter in town centres across the Harrogate district with the help of a new street cleaning machine.
The waste vacuum cleaner is easy to use, compact, self-propelled and 100 per cent electric.
It can clean much quicker than manual litter picking and is especially effective at picking up small items of litter such as cigarette butts and disposable takeaway cups.
All the waste is sucked up through the flexible and durable nozzle and collected in bags at the back of the machine. It also has an on-board pressure washer to remove any stubborn stains.
Councillor Andrew Paraskos, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for environment, waste reduction and recycling, said:
Sadly, some people think it is completely acceptable to just discard litter on the street. Which is why we, and an army of volunteers, work tirelessly to ensure our town centres and villages look their best for locals and visitors alike.
The addition of the street cleaning machine will make this task even easier and I know it will make the task of clearing litter that bit easier for our dedicated team.
The street cleaning machine costs around £18,000, has a 10-hour battery life and will be rotated around towns across the Harrogate district.
Please don’t forget Jennyfield area which has a bad litter problem. I don’t think the council have swept streets, weeded curbs or fixed potholes since way before 2019. We are paying council tax for a service that isn’t being carried out.
What is the point in spending that amount of money on a machine, when the kerbs in all streets in Harrogate have WEEDS 2ft high growing This Town has lost it IDENTITY, big time.The present Council is a discrace.
HBC are clueless and are completely out of touch with the real needs of Harrogate and the surrounding areas! Harrogate town centre has been going rapidly downhill for years,especially the cleanliness,which doesn’t encourage tourists/visitors to the area and for them to come back!
With regards to Knaresborough………just WHO is going to operate this machine? We have no street cleaners, just the van drivers who empty the bins. They do a Fantastic job, but I can’t see them using this new toy!!!
Has anyone from the council considered the potential health and safety issues this machine could have on the user after prolonged us. Poor posture and constant twisting as it is driven from the front requiring user to keep looking back.