05 October 2016
A plant and tipper operator is adopting a fleet of high visibility cyclist-friendly tippers for use in and around the historic city of Cambridge, it has announced.tnb-mick-george-1
Mick George Ltd, which is based in Huntingdon, Cambs, has commissioned a fleet of Mercedes-Benz Econic construction vehicles, the first of their type to go into service outside London.
The new trucks will spend much of their time working in and around the historic centre of Cambridge, which has been described as the UK’s ‘city of cycling’. Mick George Ltd has a waste contract with the University of Cambridge, requiring its vehicles to frequently enter the city.
The Mercedes-Benz Econic combines a panoramic windscreen and full-height glazed passenger door, with a low seating position that allows the driver to make direct eye contact with cyclists and pedestrians at junctions and in traffic.
This means the low-entry chassis offers significant safety advantages in a university city where, it has been estimated, one in five journeys is made by bike, many of them by students.
A leading supplier to the construction industry in East Anglia and the East Midlands, Mick George operates quarries, landfill sites and waste transfer stations, and provides bulk excavation and earthmoving, aggregate supply and waste management services.
The order comprises five 18-tonne Econic 1830s with Hyva skip-loader bodies and five 32-tonne Econic 3235 ENAs with alloy tipping bodies by Wilcox. The eight-wheelers, which have a payload of 20,450 kg, have single front steer axles, double-drive bogies and rear-steer axles. This configuration gives the vehicle a tight turning circle, and makes it significantly more manoeuvrable than a standard 8×4 construction truck, a major advantage for operation in tight streets.
The trucks are also fitted with additional safety kit, including five cameras, nearside proximity scan systems, left and right turn audible alarms and additional warning markings.