Council Recycling Centres

[naomi24]

Can anyone think of a good reason why the Council Recycling Centres/Tips aren't back to working normally? For some an appointment is necessary - others are restricting access to just a couple of vehicles at a time resulting in lengthy queues - and waiting times. It doesn't make sense to me - but I guess they have their reasons. Any ideas?

[bhg481]

We have 2 tips in West Berkshire which have been working on an appointments system and it's brilliant with no queues. I hope they make the appointment system permanent.

[MallyJ]

Social distancing was mentioned during our visit to the local tip...and odd registration plates on odd numbered days etc. Seems to be a way of keeping the tips safe for the employees and the tippers...

[vulcan42]

It doesn't make sense to me either. My local centre, pre virus, opened five days a week and was overseen by one man, now it's opened three days a week and "requires" four men. We have to book an appointment, time on site is limited to ten minutes and from last week we now have to fill in a form on arrival.

[THECORBYLOON]

Other than social distancing, ours are open as normal

[theshedman]

We could do with an appointment system at ours. If we turn up and and there are no places at the entrance we are told to go away as we are not allowed to park on the main road even tight up against the side of the road. Sometimes going back later makes no difference as teh same thing happens. Can be a right pain.

[naomi24]

When supermarkets are practically back to normal, and pubs, etc., it seems a bit daft to restrict something that operates in the open air.

[sevenOP]

Fomites = objects or materials which are likely to carry infection, such as clothes, utensils, and furniture.
And extra load generated with binned wipes/masks etc.

[naomi24]

Vulcan, what do they do if you overstay your ten minutes? Kick you out with a vehicle still half loaded with rubbish?

[smudge]

We live in South Bedfordshire & have never seen so much fly tipping around the countryside since the appointment system came into action!

[naomi24]

I'm in the country, smudge, and it's not just by roadsides and in fields. Someone left an old dustbin at the supermarket bottle bank the other day! Lazy blighters. They make me so mad!

[Buenchico]

Keeping traffic flows moving (and thus avoiding queueing out onto the road) has been cited as one of the main reasons for using an appointment system here in Suffolk.
https://www.suffolk.gov.uk/planning-waste-and-environment/waste-and-recycling/book-a-recycling-centre-time-slot/
It's been suggested in our local rag that it could become permanent.

[THECORBYLOON]

A few month ago we had queues of about an hour for the dump and the roadworks past the dump meant temporary traffic lights.

The road is also on a bus route so there was a queue getting into the dump, queues not moving at the lights, a bus in the middle of it all and folk doing ten-point turns to escape past the bus in both directions.

I'm surprised the police weren't called to sort it out and close the dump early.

[woofgang]

I don't think its just the distancing requirements. Round here appointments have FINALLY been put in to deal with a longstanding problem of on road queuing which, before lock down, had been known to block the local roundabouts and gridlock the traffic. Additionally they were closed for a while and while they asked people to think about how they would deal with rubbish produced by home improvement projects, it did mount up and they had a lot more refuse than usual to deal with. As soon as it was possible, folk round me also started getting workmen in to do the bigger work that had been postponed due to the lockdown. I think the continual limitations are more to do with managing the amount of refuse that needs to be processed than infection control issues.

[bednobs]

I am also near bhgs tips and I think appt is good. Quite often the road gets blocked and even though it's a dual carriageway just there it causes problems. Double now because the road is very near the road for mac ds drivethrough and that can also quite often block the road too

[teacake44]

In many areas the problems with recycling centres/tips was self inflicted by the councils themselves. Cut backs in staff resulted in some being closed down, and the remaining ones only being open 2/3 days a week, then along with this you have the bright sparks within the council who think by reducing these sites will in turn reduce the amount of rubbish we produce. Most of the fly tipping is a result of private businesses who by rights have to pay to use such sites for their business waste, of course this is an expense most will try and avoid, so will dump anywhere possible, as for the private home owner who just dumps their rubbish wherever are just bone idle, that can be the only explanation as they don't have to pay to visit such. Until councils start to enforce the large fines that they are allowed to, it will continue. So again to a certain degree its self inflicted by the council by being to soft.

[dave50]

Total over reaction as usual. Everything is in the open air, more chance of being struck by bloody lightning.

[woofgang]

dave have you not read the thread? its not about infection.

[Old_Geezer]

No real reason. Perhaps they still want social distancing. But after parking folk pass each other unavoidably anyway.

[vulcan42]

\\ Vulcan, what do they do if you overstay your ten minutes? Kick you out with a vehicle still half loaded with rubbish?//
naomi, this is where the system becomes even more ridiculous. They allow the person to finish and everybody else has to wait, in the meantime the queue gets longer and very quickly the system collapses. Typical council inefficiency and all complaints are ignored.

[naomi24]

Vulcan, The reason I posted this was because my husband had an appointment this morning. He got there a little early, no one in there, but he still had to wait outside until the appointed time. That seems really daft to me.