LAWRENCE — The phasing in of the city's new automated trash pickup program starts Tuesday, despite a plea from city councilors to delay it because they said residents are confused and unprepared.
Mayor Michael Sullivan yesterday said delaying the program again will be too costly.
Pickups are scheduled to be made on about 370 of the city's 620 streets where residents have received specially designed carts, said Norm Nimmo, the city's recycling coordinator.
Automated trash pickup was supposed to start in July, but was pushed back to Nov. 10 so the city and trash removal company could educate the community.
Fliers were distributed to residents, and announcements were made on the radio and at neighborhood association meetings. Cable television is running a 16-minute video about the program, said Stan Walczak, Allied Waste Services general manager.
Nimmo said the citywide program is being phased in beginning on Prospect Hill, Tower Hill, a small area of the Arlington neighborhood in North Lawrence and in the South Lawrence neighborhoods of Colonial Heights, South Common and southwest Lawrence.
Nimmo said they intentionally excluded areas in the startup where they knew parking could be a problem.
Officials hope to save roughly $500,000 a year with the program.
Allied Waste Services, which runs similar programs in seven nearby communities, was awarded a three-year, $6.08 million contract to provide the service.
Tuesday is trash day for everyone in Lawrence.
Most residents will receive blue, wheeled 65-gallon trash carts. Smaller, 35-gallon carts are available for senior citizens or single residents who have less trash. A blue cart will be given to each unit in apartment houses, Walczak said.
By 7 a.m. on Tuesdays, the blue carts must be put at the curb and a trash pickup truck will empty it. The trucks have automated arms that pick up the cart and empty it into the truck.
Recyclable items should be placed separately in bins curbside, he said.
"The city will be as clean as it always is when we leave on Tuesday," Walczak said.
The same automated trash pickup program is under way in Lowell, where Walczak said it took about two months to work out all the kinks. The company is prepared for startup issues and problems in Lawrence.
"We know it will work in Lawrence," said Walczak, noting Lowell will save about $1 million this year because of the automated program.
"I think people are going to be surprised. The program is going to work better than anyone anticipated. It will take time, patience and work to get everyone onboard," Walczak said.
He said the program also has worked in Burlington, Billerica, Tewksbury, Tyngsborough and Londonderry, N.H.
None of the city's 330 businesses are included in the program, although Allied Waste Services has agreed to pick up their recyclable items.
Previously, businesses were never included in the city's trash pickup program, although for years Allied Waste Services removed it anyway, Walczak said.
About 9,000 city residences will not qualify for automated trash pickup because they are large multifamily complexes or on steep streets that the automated trucks cannot navigate.
In those cases, Allied Waste Services will continue to remove the trash by hand from conventional buckets or bags placed curbside, Walczak said.
In other communities that switched to automated trash pickup, residents had to pay for their curbside carts. However, Allied Waste Services fronted the $600,000 needed to buy the blue carts, which it is now distributing to residents at no charge, he said.
Wednesday night, city councilors took a unanimous "symbolic vote," asking Sullivan to delay the start of the program due to residents' concerns.
Yesterday, Sullivan considered pushing back the start date but decided against it because of city finances.
"The main theme here is we don't want to burden the next administration with an unbalanced budget," said Sullivan. He has about two months left in office before Mayor-elect William Lantigua takes over in January.
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How automated trash pickup works
Each residence will be provided a wheeled, 65-gallon trash cart at no charge.
Put bagged garbage only in the cart and keep the lid closed tight.
Place the cart curbside by 7 a.m. Tuesday, the city's trash pickup day.
Make sure the cart is 3 feet away from mailboxes, parked cars, trees and light posts.
The handle and lid should face your residence.
If items are too large and don't fit in the cart, call Allied customer service 800-442-9006 to arrange for a special bulk pickup.
If you have more trash than fits into your cart, overflow bags can be purchased for $3.75 each at the Department of Public Works and City Hall. Additional carts also can be purchased.
For those not included in the first round of automated trash pickup, trash limits of 65 gallons (5 large garbage bags) will be imposed.
For more information, visit the city's Web site at www.cityoflawrence.com.
If you need a cart or recycling bins, call Allied customer service at 800-442-9006.
