Robot Trucks Collect Raves Agency Wants To Expand Automated Trash Pickup After Survey Shows Residents Brimming With Joy

The city of Spokane’s automated garbage project is on a roll, hauling in praise from residents and refuse collectors alike.

Eileen Wilbrink loves the ease of moving the trash cart on wheels. She no longer has to strain to carry out the ungainly garbage can or spend time picking up trash that spilled onto the street.

“I just wheel it out like that - no problem,” said Wilbrink, who lives in the Indian Trail area.

Refuse collector Jim Fenton rarely has to leave his truck.

“It’s so easy,” he said, pushing a lever that sends a mechanical claw after a cart filled with garbage.

Last year, the city set out to streamline trash collection - buying three trucks that require only one worker to do a job that usually needs two.

A recent survey of the 8,300 homes in 10 pilot neighborhoods showed overwhelming support for the program. In fact, 92 percent of the more than 3,200 people who responded said they favor expanding automated collection to the entire city.

Solid Waste Director Dennis Hein hopes the City Council is paying attention.

Armed with stacks of glowing surveys, Hein will head to City Hall at 6:30 tonight to make a pitch for enlarging the program.

Hein wants the council to approve buying eight more of the trucks and 24,000 rolling trash carts this year at a cost of about $2.4 million. The money would come from reserves.

If approved, the new trucks won’t be here until late this year or early in 1997. Hein hasn’t determined the number of new routes or where they would be located.

Automating the entire city will take about five years and 21 trucks.

Neither Valley Garbage Service nor Waste Management of Spokane, the companies that serve the county’s unincorporated areas, has plans to automate its service.

Hein said he isn’t surprised by the success of the city’s pilot program.

“I thought it would go the way it has gone,” he said.

The trucks have mechanized arms that pick up the trash carts and dump their contents into compactors. One worker can collect trash from 800 to 900 homes a day instead of the 500 to 600 homes served by two workers with a traditional garbage truck.

An automated truck costs about $141,000 compared with a cost of about $125,000 for a regular garbage truck.

The carts have wheels and a hinged lid and cost an average of $52 each. Every household receives its first cart free, with the size dependent on residents’ current garbage service.

Twenty-gallon carts replace mini-can service, 32-gallon carts replace one-can service, 64-gallon carts replace two-can service and 96-gallon carts replace three-can service.

Most residents rave about the mechanized service - especially the rolling carts, which they say are easier to haul to the curb than cans are.

The carts are less likely to tip because of their rectangular shape and heavy axles.

“It’s a lot cleaner,” said Hank Wilbrink. “I used to have them blow over and stuff was all over the streets.”

The surveys are filled with accolades. Residents hail the project as “wonderful” and “convenient.” They “love it” because it “saves the back” and it’s “nice and neat.”

“I’ve been here since 1974, and this is by far the best thing I’ve seen the city do,” said one respondent.

The “yes” stack dwarfs the “no” stack.

Those who do complain say the carts aren’t always emptied completely. Some customers worry about long-term costs and trash collectors losing their jobs.

Hein has ready answers for nearly every concern.

As for trash getting stuck in the carts, “people are trying to stuff 40 gallons of trash into 32 gallons,” he said, adding those residents need to get larger carts. Residents who occasionally have large items or extra trash can call for a special pickup - the cost depends on the amount.

In the long run, automated garbage collection is slightly cheaper, Hein said. Most routes will need only one worker instead of two, which cuts down on wages.

People can expect smaller rate hikes , he said, adding that his department didn’t raise fees this year. The other two city utilities - sewage and water - did.

No employees will lose their jobs, Hein said. He expects to decrease the number of trash collectors from 48 to about 35 during the five-year phase-in, but positions will be lost only to attrition.

Cost is not the driving factor, he added. Automated collection is safer and more efficient for his employees.

Some routes never will be fully automated, Hein said. Neighborhoods with narrow alleys and no driveways will have semi-automated service, in which one worker will drive the truck while another moves the carts to the pickup arm.

Cash for the new carts and trucks will come from money set aside each year for equipment replacement, Hein said.

Councilman Chris Anderson, who lives in a pilot neighborhood, at first was skeptical of the program but now is sold on its advantages - and Hein’s fiscal skills.

“I will support this 100 percent,” Anderson said. “Dennis’ management of this department deserves to be recognized.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo; Graphic: Residents rate automated garbage pickup