Saturday, October 9, 2010

Garbage Truck Picks Up Bulky Items

I reported several different bulky items located throughout the neighbourhood this last week. Most of the items I reported were in the form of a single email sent to 311. I gave a basic description of the items in each lane between the areas of Main and Redword to McGregor and Mountain. It seems every lane had its share of bulky items sitting in and around dumpsters. The 311 agent said it would take extra time to take care of that complaint because it was too general. It would have to be sent to a supervisor to assess the amount of garbage to be picked up so they can schedule the correct workforce to take care of the issues.
That seems fair enough, except, when I was talking to a supervisor in a City of Winnipeg truck, who was driving down the back lanes in my area, I got a different picture. He told me he checks all bulky item reports. He said he checks all of my reports as well, where I give a specific address, a list of items, and include a photograph of the items to be picked up. There seems to be a bit of a discrepency in what 311 is telling me, and what I am seeing in action on the street, or should I say in the back lane.
I did see one of the dumpsters that I reported earlier in the week get its bulky items picked up though. I made my report on Sunday last week, and heard the garbage truck in the back lane. I was interested in what would happen with the particular pickup, because I knew more items had been deposited since I made the ticket. I wanted to see if they would pick up only the items I requested or if they would pick up all the items that were at the dumpster.
By the time my husband and I arrived in the back lane across the street there was an audience watching the waste management workers. There was a scrapper, waiting to get at the dumpster, and there was an elderly gentleman, who was another home owner. The elderly gentleman had also placed a complaint with 311 over the phone regarding the dumpster and demanded that they pick up the entire amount of garbage instead of the six item limit that seems to be written into their contract.
So, there we were, all four of us, watching as the one worker stood by the truck (likely operating the mechanism that crushes the bulky items), and the other loaded the bulky items in.
The workers did pick up every large item that was beside the dumpsters, and even picked up the garbage on the ground, throwing it into the dumpster. I think they did it because of the audience watching them.
But as much as they ensured the work was completed to our satisfaction at the one dumpster, they drove right past a couch that was in the back lane. I witnessed the couch get dragged out of one of the houses just a few hours earlier and deposited in the back lane for the garbage truck to pick up.
Of course I understand why the couch was left in the back lane. It was sitting there waiting for someone to call the city and report it as being in the back lane. It was waiting for the 311 agent to create a ticket and have a city worker come out and verify that it truely is a couch, sitting in the back lane, waiting to get picked up. It is waiting for the city worker to confirm the pickup and send the request to the waste management company that is contracted to take care of our garbage so they can send another truck, just like the one in the picture, to come down the same back lane. What a waste of City dollars. The truck was right there. It drove right by that couch. The couch will be in the back lane for at least another week, hoping and praying that nobody sets it on fire, so it can be moved to its final resting place in the Brady Landfil. In the meantime, don't get too close to it. It may have bed bugs. And for heaven sakes don't take it home with you.

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