City of Vancouver to buy 14 new large fire trucks for $27 million

Example of a large fire truck supplied by Safetek Emergency. Not of the actual vehicle model to be acquired by the City of Vancouver. (Safetek Profire)

Up to 14 fire engine vehicles will be acquired by the City of Vancouver over the coming years at a cost of about $26.6 million.

Next week, Vancouver City Council is expected to approve a contract to order the “Large Fire Apparatus” vehicles from Abbotsford-based Safetek Emergency Vehicles, which was selected following a bidding process.

The initial order will be for three vehicles at a cost of approximately $5.7 million over the first five-year term, followed by options to extend for four additional one-year terms for the remaining vehicles. If the contract is fully enacted, all 14 vehicles would arrive by the early 2030s.

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These new vehicles are needed to replace Vancouver Fire Rescue Services (VFRS) trucks that are approaching the end of their lifespan. They will run on renewable diesel to reduce carbon emissions.

City staff have noted that during the bidding process, the competing suppliers were asked to provide battery-electric trucks as an option for consideration for these new large vehicles, but they were later deemed unsuitable for reliable emergency needs as the technology is still in its infancy. More specifically, the proposed battery-electric trucks did not meet the minimum specifications for the water pumping capacity of fire operations, and the associated costs were significantly higher.

“The electric fire apparatus technology is nascent and unproven, which represents risk considering that the equipment’s purpose is life-safety and needs to be relied upon during an emergency,” state City staff.

But Vancouver’s fire department will be extensively testing the use of a battery-electric model for small-sized fire trucks. This year, VFRS is expected to receive one Austrian-built Rosenbauer vehicle, which carries a charging capacity of 150 kW, and is equipped with a diesel range extender as a backup.

The City’s 2023-2026 capital budget has also set aside $200,000 in funding to electrify 10 VFRS supporting vehicles and equipment. The largest future investment for the fire department, totalling $37 million, will largely go towards the renovation and expansion of Fire Hall No. 8 at the northwest corner of the intersection of Smithe and Hamilton streets in downtown Vancouver. There are also longer-term plans to relocate the West End’s Fire Hall No. 6, currently located at the southwest corner of the intersection of Nicola and Nelson streets, to a new facility on a different nearby site.

In recent years, the Vancouver Police Department has also adopted the use of battery-electric vehicles for some of its operations.

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