MASSENA — A handful of Massena Village Public Works Department vehicles are aging, but new New York State regulations will likely make it more difficult to purchase replacement vehicles in the near future.

DPW Superintendent Marty Miller recently told village trustees that some vehicles, including dump trucks, are in poor condition and “may not last long.” In some cases, the availability of parts proves to be problematic, requiring the purchase of new vehicles.

But Miller said vehicle emissions regulations and the state’s attempts to shift all municipal vehicle fleets to battery-powered vehicles are problematic.

Due to these policies, which will come into effect in 2026, many distributors will not take orders for combustion engine vehicles in 2025.

Miller said there likely won’t be any new vehicle purchases next year because of electric vehicle and emissions regulations.

“Most of our sellers have sent letters saying they’re not going to take any orders in 2025. So what’s going to happen is after 2025 you’re going to be behind on trucks,” Miller said .

He commented that with delays in production, coupled with diesel vehicles no longer being available for purchase, delays in truck purchases will be worse than has been experienced during the COVID pandemic.

“It will be three years before we get a truck,” Miller said.

Dump trucks ordered during the pandemic took almost two years to be delivered.

Miller said he was also going to try to “cure” a handful of the village’s garbage trucks, but noted that it was becoming increasingly difficult to do.

“We have done a great job with the van fleet. However, we have some dump trucks that I can no longer get parts for. It’s tough right now and the price keeps going up,” Miller said.

The need to modernize the village’s fleet follows state regulations adopted in 2023 that will require all passenger vehicles sold in New York to be zero-emission by the 2035 model year.

All student transport will also be required to meet zero-emission standards by 2035, both for buses and passenger vehicles that would be used to transport students.

All school district purchases or leases must be zero-emission starting July 1, 2027, and all diesel and gasoline vehicles will be phased out by 2035, state officials said.

If a district believes it will not be able to meet these deadlines, officials can request a two-year extension, but this does not guarantee that state officials will approve such an extension.