Garbage truck

truck specially designed to collect small quantities of waste and haul the collected waste to a solid waste treatment facility

A garbage truck, also known as a dustcart, rubbish truck, dustbin lorry, or bin lorry is a truck made to collect waste and then take it to a waste site, such as a landfill. Garbage trucks can collect waste from the front, side or back of the truck.

A front-loading garbage truck in San Jose, California
A side-loading garbage truck in Aardenburg, The Netherlands
A back-loading garbage truck in Boinville-le-Gaillard, France

Some garbage trucks crush waste to make it smaller and easier to move around.

History

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Wagons and horses were used to collect waste for hundreds of years. When the steam engine was invented, lots of new machines and vehicles were made using it. In 1897, one of the first garbage trucks ever was made. It was powered by a steam engine, and made by a company called Thornycroft.[1] Most garbage trucks now move using an internal combustion engine or electric motor.

References

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  1. "Motor-Cars for Dust Collection", The Automotor and Horseless Carriage Journal, February 1897, p192