Marblehead car auction considered a success

MARBLEHEAD – The town earned $22,000 at Thursday’s surplus vehicle auction on Tower Way – but a large crowd of bidders showed no interest in a 1993 electric pick-up truck built by employees of the Municipal Light Department.An excited Becky Curran, acting as town procurement officer, said one of the used trucks on the list went for $6,500 in some spirited bidding.As for the 1985 Chevrolet pickup truck, modified to be used as an electric vehicle with electric motor and batteries, Curran said she had some callers asking about it after the auction concluded, including one who sounded “particularly interested.”As of Thursday afternoon Curran was doing some research to see how the town might legally dispose of a vehicle that drew no bids in an advertised town auction.The truck does have a place in town history. It was built for the 100th anniversary of the Municipal Light Department and project supervisor Robert Jolly, who today serves as department manager, said it was meant to prove that electric transportation had a future.Jolly said the truck has new tires and wheels and once a new battery pack is installed it is still capable of traveling 40-50 miles each time it is charged – preferably in the summertime, since it lacks heat.”At a reasonable price a hobbyist could pick this up, fix it and use it a little around town,” he said.