Overflowing bins cause a stink after collection shake-up

Published on Thursday 21 April 2011 17:28

BINS have been left overflowing and unemptied in several areas of Edinburgh because of a shake-up of collection routes.

Residents in Saughton Mains, Broomhall and Corstorphine were amongst those who complained that their bins had not been emptied at the usual times - with some left for more than two weeks.

The council insisted the problems had nothing to do with its ongoing dispute with bin men - but had been created by moves designed to make the service more efficient.

A re-organisation has seen teams of workers moved off their usual routes to create a more equal distribution of work, and help staff finish their shifts on time.

The council insisted no routes or collection times had been changed, but admitted the changes had led to a backlog as a result of some workers getting used to their new routes.

It also apologised for any problems caused, which could potentially affect areas across the city.

It is expected services will be back to normal within the next week.

Corstorphine Labour councillor Jeremy Balfour said: "I do know that this has been an issue in some areas of the city, and sorting this out needs to be one of the priorities for the council, as the collection of refuse is a core service. I would hope that this is just a glitch and that things will get back to normal very shortly, but if not then urgent action will have to be taken to address these problems."

Gorgie Labour councillor Eric Milligan, whose ward was also affected by the changes, said the council needed to do more to improve refuse collection services across the Capital.

He said: "There have been refuse collection problems for residents in Saughton and the surrounding area for some time.

"It has to be said that the council's record in this area across the whole city is not great, with the ongoing dispute with workers and problems collecting recycling.

"I certainly want a better service, and hopefully these changes will deliver that, but the council needs to make sure that it provides everyone in the city, regardless of where they live, with an equally high level of service."

Council chiefs admitted earlier this year that the long-running bin dispute might never be resolved, after refuse collectors again voted to reject council proposals at a formal ballot.

Bin men rejected a council proposal that could have brought an end to their dispute at a ballot held at the Powderhall depot.

It emerged at the time that a number of controversial changes to shift patterns and the routes they cover had been put on hold until a decision is taken on whether to privatise the service in the summer.

A city council spokeswoman said: "Some collection routes were reorganised recently to improve the service."We are currently working a bit behind schedule and would ask the public to bear with us until crews get accustomed to the changes."