TORONTO—Despite the city’s promise to clear all city garbage by the end of the weekend, the new garbage collection trucks from Green For Life (GFL) haven’t showed up in some neighbourhoods, making the residents frustrated.
Jim Harnum, general manager of Solid Waste Management Services (SWMS), said the staff are still learning the ropes.
“There’s a huge learning curve here, they have to learn the routes, they have to learn how to efficiently operate the new trucks, they have to learn how to get in and out of the transfer stations,” said Harnum.
He said the situation should stabilize within 3 to 4 weeks.
“We’re starting to already see positive signs this week, that they’re getting better with every day,” he said.
About 99.5 percent of residents did get their trash picked up, but there were a lot of complaints from those who didn’t, according to Harnum.
On Aug. 7, GFL became responsible for about 165,000 homes in the area between Humber River to Yonge Street and Steeles Avenue to Lakeshore. The new trucks must collect organics, garbage, recycling, and leaf and yard waste.
According to Harnum, the project will save the city some $11 million which could go towards capital expenses like maintaining transfer stations, keeping trucks on the road, and operating the green lane landfill.
The 130 full-time staff that lost their jobs collecting trash were redeployed and remain working at the city. Some of the 90 temporary employees that were laid off by SWMS now work for GFL. The city’s mandate outlines the fair-wage schedule for the contracted GFL workers.
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