LR waste collection routes set to change

City aims to shift weekly workload

Little Rock plans to update its solid waste collection routes to better balance the work throughout the week.

Although reducing shifts because of the coronavirus pandemic led to delayed yard waste pickups, the city staff over the past year has been looking into the broader issue of how it can adjust yard waste, garbage collection and recycling routes, Public Works Department Director Jon Honeywell told the Board of Directors during a policy meeting Tuesday.

Routes have been the same since 2004.

“Obviously the city has changed drastically in those last 16 years,” he said.

Monday, which is the pickup day for a section of west Little Rock, is the heaviest with 17 routes and 15,534 houses.

Having Monday as the pickup day for that route hasn’t accounted for annexations the city has made to the west as well as increased development in that area, Honeywell said.

The route changes will affect about 12,000 customers, with the vast majority having their pickup day moved to later in the week. A smaller number — 348 — will have their pickup day move to a day earlier in the week.

The new routes are to be implemented by the end of July, Honeywell said.

The city provides garbage and recycling services to about 60,000 residential customers.

Currently, Monday and Tuesday are the city’s biggest days for pickup in terms of the number of customers served, meaning that even in non-pandemic times, pickups can fall behind schedule.

Honeywell said that also leads to a “tremendous amount” of overtime hours worked by those crews as well as additional wear and tear on city equipment, not to mention frustration from residents.

“It snowballs throughout the week,” he said.

The changes were recommended by a consulting firm in the same study, presented last August, that recommended the city increase its garbage pickup rates. Until Jan. 1, the city had not changed pickup rates since 2004.

Routes don’t correspond with ward boundaries. Roughly, Monday is pickup day for a northwest chunk of the city; Tuesday covers the Heights neighborhood and some of the surrounding area; Wednesday covers west-central Little Rock; Thursday covers east Little Rock and part of the central city; and Friday covers the southwest part of the city.

According to the plan, 5,103 customers will move from Monday to Tuesday; 3,932 will move from Tuesday to Wednesday; 2,786 will move from Wednesday to Thursday; 344 will move from Wednesday to Tuesday; and four will move from Friday to Wednesday.

The changes do not re

quire formal approval from the Board of Directors but could be subject to further discussion.

Before that, the city plans to have a virtual town hall discussion where residents will be able to learn more about the planned changes and submit questions the week of June 29.

Affected residents also will be notified with mailers and door hangers in July before the city implements the new routes and collection days the week of July 27.