Improving Riverside's Waste Collection: Addressing Delays and Planning for the Future

Let’s talk trash this month! It is no secret that the city has struggled to stabilize waste collection services due to a fleet of aging trucks and staffing. This month, I want to spend some time identifying the challenges facing our waste management collection and outline our plan to improve our services.

Residents are angry, and rightfully so! Many of our routes have been days behind, which is a health and safety issue. Something had to be done.

On Tuesday, September 17th, the City Council and City Manager took action to address the issue head-on. City Manager Mike Futrell authorized an emergency order to address the service delays that Riversiders have been experiencing. Through the emergency order, Athens Services began supplementing our city crews on impacted routes starting Thursday, September 19th.

Under this emergency order, Athens Services will temporarily expand its refuse services in areas covered by city crews facing delays. While this emergency order is in place, our city refuse drivers will continue to work delivering replacement trash cans, checking residential cans for contamination, and assisting with service on manual routes. This emergency declaration will be reviewed periodically but could remain in place for six months.

The Public Works team has also been strategizing other ways to improve services. For example, on September 17th, theCity Council approved an inter-fund loan of $2,870,000 from the General Fund Infrastructure Reserves to the Solid Waste Fund. This funding will facilitate the purchase of 5 new refuse vehicles from Peterbilt Motors, expected to arrive by the end of the year.

These five trucks will join the fleet along with the ten side-loading trucks and two rear-loading trucks from Velocity Truck Centers, approved for purchase by City Council in June of 2023. We are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the vehicles but are facing long waits for delivery due to high demand nationwide. Almost every city in the country is facing this backlog.

Staffing challenges have also impacted our services, but we are making progress in hiring (this is also a national issue!). City Council approved a 5-person relief crew that will assist with route coverage when the regular drivers are unavailable. The Public Works team is working closely with our Human Resources department to fill these and other vacant positions, with interviews and testing scheduled for September 14th and 28th.

We are also installing technology upgrades in all trash trucks to improve route service, especially for new drivers. This new software will collect data, such as when cans are not placed on the curb for service, and will enable us to rebalance routes and assess driver performance. The Solid Waste division is currently testing this technology and will be fully operational soon.

Earlier this year, the City Council also approved a Solid Waste SHARE Program to benefit qualifying low-income residents and help offset rate increases. If you are interested in participating in this program (or if you’d like to contribute to the fund to assist your neighbors), visit our website for additional information and to identify if your household meets the participation requirements.  

Our community's ability to respond to tough challenges together makes our community great. As Mayor, my job is to listen to you and bring your insights to the City Council and city manager so we can identify effective solutions. We have taken significant steps, implementing both immediate measures to address waste collection delays and long-term strategies to ensure our services can meet future demands. This situation has provided us with a valuable opportunity to improve and adapt. I want to thank you all for your continued engagement and patience as it strengthens Riverside.