Birmingham Public Works says new uniform trash bins will help free up more employees for other city projects

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - If you’re in Birmingham, you could get your new uniform trash can this week, as public works crews update your trash bins and garbage pick up schedules.

Crews are distributing 5,000 new trash bins to the East side of town this week. Then, they’ll put 15,000 more cans throughout the South, North, and West sides. It’s part of phase one of their new trashcan rollout plan. The city got 25,000 of the 100,000 ordered bins in, but they are keeping 5,000 cans at public works for replacements.

Public Works Director Josh Yates said this should help keep your streets cleaner, because all garbage has to go inside a bag and this is going to free up more city workers.

Yates said the city has struggled for years to hire and staff garbage collectors, because the job is dangerous. He said they have seen many injuries and some can take employees off their routes for weeks. But, with the new uniform bins, Yates said this won’t be a problem.

Yates said no public works employee is losing their job, but the new cans come with new automated side loader trucks, and that means the city will need less garbage collectors.

Yates said now, they can use the extra crew members for other city and garbage projects, like illegal dumping clean up and bulk trash pick up.

“We can utilize those positions to help with more litter clean up and more alley clean up,” Yates said. “There’s a lot of ways we can benefit while using these crews. The new system overall is going to make us a lot more efficient. It’s going to make us a lot more effective.”

Yates said another way these carts will help public works be more effective is the new tracking. There is a device in each trash can that will show public works crews if the cart at your house has been dumped yet. Yates said this will help hold them accountable to their trash pick up schedule.

Click here for more on how this trash rollout plan will work.

Click here for more details on the new pick-up schedule.

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