MEMBERS of Bridgend Council have agreed to borrow around £1.2 million this month in order to purchase new fleet vehicles used in their everyday services.
The move, which is part of the authority’s fleet replacement programme, was discussed by officers and councillors at a full council meeting held on March 12, 2025.
It will allow for the purchase of 31 vehicles which need to be replaced, including those used in a number of services such as social care and highway maintenance, as well as other plant and equipment.
These include vehicles such as two boxer vans, six tippers worth £220,000 as well as 15 custom vans worth around £480,000 used for building and grounds maintenance.
The report read: “31 of the 186 vehicles in the BCBC fleet are now identified as needing to be replaced alongside replacement plant and equipment during 2025-26 at a cost of circa £1.2m.
“Council approval of capital to procure these vehicles via prudential borrowing will enable temporary vehicles to be off-hired or age expired vehicles replaced where appropriate.”
Officers said without going ahead they would likely have to use a more expensive option of hiring of plant and vehicles to replace “age expired items” or risk the additional costs of maintenance on what would be an increasingly less reliable fleet.
They later recommended that the borrowing be added to the council’s capital budget, though added that revenue for the repayment of any capital borrowing was available and allocated within departmental budgets.
The plans for the borrowing were first approved at a council cabinet meeting before being approved by all members unanimously at full council on March 12.
