Some ongoing confusion on where to place your trash can in the City of Jacksonville was alleviated during last night’s City Council meeting.
Ward 2 Alderwoman Lori Large Oldenettel addressed the problem of GFL trash cans that are placed in the street are causing some streets to become more of a one-lane road that disrupts traffic flow.
Earlier this summer, GFL announced that by September 1st, the company would be switching to trucks fitted with automatic trash container pickup, in which a mechanical arm reaches out from the side of the truck and dumps the can in one motion.
The instructions included in the announcement however led to many residents placing their containers in the street due to wording that said the wheels should face the curb.
Jacksonville City Clerk Skip Bradshaw worked to clear the air on where the containers should be replaced. “I think the question was, what are we going to do with the trash containers in the streets, and after talking to Mr. Reeves at GFL, the unit that picks up these [containers] can pick them up six feet from the street. So no trash containers should be in the street. If you don’t have a curb or anything like that, put it at the end of your driveway.”
According to the GFL website, The wheels and handles should be facing your home with the lid opening to the street. Bradshaw says concerns have also been raised about how the city will plow the streets this winter if the area sees significant snowfall, as well as causing issues for the street sweeper.
He says residents need to place their containers in the boulevard with the handle and wheels facing in toward the home to ensure trash can be safely picked up while leaving the full street for passing traffic. Containers should also be three to four feet away from other containers, trees, or utility poles so the mechanical arm can completely grab the container.