Lib Dems call for extra green bin collection

Liberal Democrats have called for an extra green bin collection to take place this month after residents criticised York Council.

Green Bin

Labour run City of York Council’s controversial changes to garden waste collection mean that the last green bin collection before April 2014 has already been completed. However, leaves are still falling from trees across York and a mild autumn has seen late grass growth and some evergreens continue to need trimming.

Lib Dems have been swamped by complaints from residents who say leaves and garden waste are piling-up. Meanwhile, council officers have admitted that the garden waste which have been collected last winter will end-up in landfill this winter – causing a further rise in landfill tax for the council.

Latest figures reveal that York is currently failing to meet any of its key recycling targets and the amount of waste being sent to landfill is increasing. This increase will see the cost of ‘landfill tax’ rocket to £3,918,960 – a £581,360 or 17% rise on 2012/13.

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E petition started as Council stops green bin collection

Green Bin

This is the last day that the Council will be emptying green bins this winter.

One resident has started an “on line”  petition aimed at getting the service restored.
Click here to access it

The petition reads

We the undersigned petition the council to collect and empty our Green Bins throughout the Year.

Autumn leaves are falling everywhere and gardens are still growing but we have nowhere to put our Green Waste unless we store it until spring or take it at our own expense to Hazel Court.
We have all paid for this service to the council who have short changed us by cutting winter collections

No apology from Labour Councillor over bins shambles

Asked, at the last Council meeting, to apologise to those residents whose bins were not emptied on time, Cllr Levene refused to do so.

Instead he claimed that only 0.12% of collections had been missed.

He conveniently forgot that 90% of residents did not have changes to their collection days.

Last Christmas some bins weren’t emptied for nearly 3 weeks and, although there have been fewer missed collections this week, the holiday season could being more problems.

Green waste collection stops at the end of the month.

Bins in Foxwood

Bins in Foxwood


The Council has incurred additional overtime expenditure on Saturdays “catching up” with missed deliveries.

Cllr Levene protestations were undermined by a fellow Cabinet member who, in response to a separate question about delays in answering at the Councils call centre, said,

“the significant increase in calls week beginning 9th September were due in the main to the waste collection changes affecting a large proportion of residents in York.

Clearly original estimates of resources needed to meet demand had to be re-evaluated once the real impacts were known, and then adjusted”.

The Cabinet member went on to say that

“We aim to answer 80% of our calls within 20 seconds with 95% of calls being answered”.

This compared to the actual performance, in early September, when average waiting times were 2.5 minutes with 40% of calls being abandoned.

Woodthorpe bins not emptied on Tuesday – 4th week of bins chaos in City

The Council reports that on Tuesday 8th October the following areas did not have their waste collected as scheduled:
Woodthorpe (green bin)

◦Summerfield Road

◦Wordsworth Cresent

◦Ullswater Terrace

◦Arundel Grove

◦Overdale Close

◦Silverdale Court

Companthorpe (Grey bin)

◦Askham Lane (Gale Lane – Ridgeway)

◦Vesper Drive

◦Ridgeway

◦Rylatt Place

◦Wetherby Road (Ridgeway to bypass)

◦Briar Avenue

◦Collingham Place

Residents survey cites poor highway maintenance as York’s biggest public service problem.

York residents survey results click to enlarge

York residents survey results click to enlarge

A survey completed by over 400 residents living in the west of York has revealed that highways and footpath maintenance are now the biggest cause for complaint.

73% thought that road and footpath maintenance had got worse in the City over the last 2 years.

The service was followed closely by ice clearance which 69% thought had got worse.

This is bad news for the Labour Council as the response come before the latest set of cuts to winter maintenance are implemented.

Parking provision was criticised by 65% with the large increases in parking charges introduced by the Labour Council likely to be the main influencing factor.

More than 50% of respondents also thought that litter, control of dogs, refuse collection and weed removal had got worse.

Only crime prevention fared relatively well, with 66% saying that the quality of the service was unchanged

The survey results will add pressure on the Council to support additional investment in street level public services at its meeting on Thursday.

Street level public service standards – plea to York Council next Thursday.

The York Council at a meeting next week will be asked to jettison its prestige expenditure plans and return to a more sensible economic policy.

Weeds need strimming at end of Ridgeway

Weeds need strimming at end of Ridgeway

A motion being put forward by the Liberal Democrats condemns deteriorating roads, footpaths and increasing litter as well as plans to reduce de icing services in winter.

It says that Labour’s decision to scrap the “York Pride” maintenance programmes means that many areas are now strewn with weeds and detritus.

Carriageway failed in Vesper Drive

Carriageway failed in Vesper Drive

Recent rain highlighted the impact that Labours decision to end the routine cleaning of gullies (road drains) is already having.

Meanwhile a rather disingenuous motion from Labour Cllr Burton, seeks to justify the bill for York staging the start of just one Tour de France stage.

The cost to taxpayers is already in excess of £1.5 million and rising.

The Labour backed motion says that any income to the Council from the event should be allocate to improve basic service standards.

It fails however to say that the income from a few hot dog stands is unlikely to make much difference.

The cost of the repairs back log on the City’s roads and footpaths alone now stands at over £20 million.

The Liberal Democrat motion reads
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Dringhouses misses out on waste bin emptying again

Today (Monday) the Council is reporting that both grey and green bins haven’t been emptied in parts of York.

Some of the roads listed on the Councils web site as “Micklegate Ward ” are actually in the Dringhouses Ward.

The web site is also a little vague about when the grey bins will actually be collected, although it seems that the green bins in Bishopthorpe will be emptied tomorrow (Tuesday)

Monday 30th September some properties in the following area(s ) did not have their waste collected as scheduled:

Grey Bin: (Micklegate Ward)

Chalfonts

◦ Pulleyn Drive

◦ White House Gardens

◦ White House Rise

◦ White House Drive

◦ White House Dale

◦ St Georges Place

◦ Newington Court

◦ Mount Vale Drive

◦ Towton Avenue

◦ Moorgarth Avenue

Green Bin: (Bishopthorpe)

◦ Copmanthorpe Lane

◦ The Coppice
◦ Kirkwell
◦ New Lane
◦ Temple Road

“Green waste will be collected on Tuesday 1st October, please remember to present your garden waste bins by 7am”.

Poppleton and Rawcliffe miss out on bin emptying today

Friday 27th September some properties in the following area(s ) did not have their waste collected as scheduled:

Green Bin: (Poppleton)

◦ Main Street
◦ Limegarth
◦ School Lane
◦ Riversvale drive
◦ Springfield Road
◦ Bankside Close
◦ Littlefield Close
◦ Nether way (part)
◦ Montague Walk
◦ Dikelands Lane
◦ Little Garth
◦ Ebor Way (part)
◦ Beech Way

Green Bin: Rawcliffe

◦ Eastholme Drive
◦ Byron Drive
◦ Southolme Drive
◦ Northolme Drive
◦ Grasmere Grove
◦ Kentmere Drive

The Council says that green waste will be collected on Saturday 28th September, “please remember to present your garden waste bins by 7am”.