The new automated garbage trucks will make their debut in the Alberni Valley next week, as Rollins Machinery Ltd. of Langley rolls at least one of them into town.
The new garbage carts, though, are going to be delayed by a couple of weeks, meaning the new system of garbage pickup won’t happen by Nov. 7 as planned.
Both the trucks and carts are coming from Rollins, which won both bids. The city has paid $562,000 for two automated arm trucks and another $493,000 for the garbage carts.
Once the trucks arrive, the city’s public works mechanics will get a chance to go over any servicing issues, and the sanitation staff will learn how to operate the automated arm, “which is like a video game joystick, basically,” public works superintendent Randy Fraser said.
The trucks only require a single operator with the new system.
The public will also have an opportunity to check out the new trucks in the coming weeks, he said.
The new carts, manufactured by Schaefer and distributed by Rollins, weren’t ready in time, Rollins sales representative Grant McAuley said Wednesday. Fraser said the city should find out Monday when they can expect the carts.
Once the new carts arrive, the public education process will begin, Fraser said. “We understand there’s going to be a learning curve for everybody,” Fraser said. “We know 98 per cent is going to go fine; we know some glitches are going to happen.”
Rollins will deliver 6,300 carts door-to-door inside the city limits over a two-week period, leaving them at the curb or roadside. They will have an informational leaflet with the cart, Fraser said.
The carts, which have wheels, will have to be left against the curb a certain way in order for the automated arm to dump the trash properly, he said.
The new system will be handy for residents and safer for city staff, Fraser added. “Once this gets going...the carts will be great.”
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