Change to front street garbage collection questioned

By Letter to the Editor on August 8, 2020.

Re: Garbage/recycling collection, cart placement changes.

Reasons? Much safer way to service your garbage cart? Safer for whom? The vehicles parked on the street? Auto repairs will cost more than fence repairs.

Weather conditions, parking issues and other objects in back alleys can make lanes dangerous or even impassable? It snows in back alleys and the street equally. Front streets are sometimes plowed to make a windrow against the sidewalk, making it difficult or impossible to put the cart on the street.

Some? Streets are also a lot wider than back alleys and less awkward for large garbage trucks to manoeuvre in? Some you need to be one way only. Also some of the earlier areas where parking of large half tons was not anticipated.

Front collection keeps alleys intact and prevents damage that can be caused by our heavy garbage trucks? Currently the heavy traffic – moving trucks, furniture delivery trucks, regular delivery trucks – utilize the front street and garbage trucks and landscape trucks use the back alley. This divides the heavy loads and should allow longer life for both surfaces.

Front collection encourages residents to take their cart back onto their property. This is a requirement in our waste bylaw and helps keep our city safe and clean. Bylaws also refer to back alleys and the requirement to move items onto your property.

Front collection creates operational efficiencies (i.e. faster collection, less backing up and turning around, less navigating in tight areas and around fences, allowing us to ensure we get all the garbage collected in a week that needs to be collected. Causing operational inefficiencies to traffic, drive in and back out of cul-de-sacs because of the vehicles, having to drive around carts or move carts, to get around them on narrow streets or having to get out of the truck and move carts. The free-flowing wind on the roads where there are no cars and the carts just blow away dumping their load.

For over 100 years alley pickup was an acceptable form of garbage collection.

Perhaps a simpler change would be much more efficient, just require all carts in the alleys be on the one side. This would enable a single pass down the alley rather than having to turn around. This option is not possible where there is no alley and would prevent parking at all on that side of a side street.

Frederick Ross

Lethbridge