Brummies have voiced their anger and fears for the future as major changes to the city’s bin collections draw closer. The city council, which became engulfed by a financial crisis, plans to transform waste collection in a bid to save money.
This means households across Brum are set to see changes implemented on a “phased basis’ this year. A report confirmed a move from weekly residual waste collections to fortnightly, proposed in last year’s alarming council budget, will take place from April onwards.
The council’s schedule shows wards served by the Perry Barr depot are set to be the first to see the new changes introduced between April and June. But certain areas served by the Lifford depot in south Birmingham may not see these changes until later in the year.
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Alongside residual waste becoming fortnightly, other changes include a weekly food waste collection service being brought in as well as a second recycling bin, which would be used by residents specifically for paper and card. “The introduction of these new services and containers will be on a phased roll out across the 69 wards commencing in April 2025,” the council report said.
“The current schedule plans to be completed by the end of November and will be done on a ward-by-ward basis”. But while the council says the changes will help improve efficiency and reliability, some Brummies have been left frustrated.
One bemoaned the fact they could expect fewer residual waste collections alongside a recent council tax rise of just under ten per cent. “What a crying shame,” they wrote. “What has happened to the city I love and grew up in.”
Another questioned how going from a weekly to fortnightly residual waste collection “can ever be a better service?” “God forbid what it’s going to be like in a year’s time,” a third said.
Cllr Majid Mahmood, cabinet member for transport and environment
(Image: Martin O’Callaghan/Birmingham Live)
“It’s a disgrace even as it stands at present.” One reader even described the changes as “spectacularly unfair”.
“This is entirely due to the council, who are also putting up the council tax,” they added. Others appeared more optimistic however, with a reader writing: “Won’t hurt them, most of the country is fortnightly collections now.
“People just need to learn to recycle.”
Coun Majid Mahmood, cabinet member for environment and transport, said previously the changes would provide Birmingham residents “with a better waste collection service that is in line with other councils”. “I know some residents are concerned about moving to a fortnightly residual waste service, but this will not be introduced until we have the food waste collections, meaning people will have less general waste,” he said.
”There will be a phased introduction and we will be communicating all the changes to residents.” The council has said it will support the changes by investing in a new fleet of lorries and food waste collection vehicles.
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It added it will replace and upgrade its IT system to help drivers communicate with its operations centre in real time. The council passed through a huge range of proposed cuts last year after facing Birmingham-specific issues, such as an equal pay fiasco and the disastrous implementation of a new IT and finance system, as well as other factors such as the rising demand for services and funding cuts.
The council’s planned schedule for when these changes to bin collections are set to be introduced can be found here.