Changes to Tulsa's residential trash system

[Hoss]

What is a contract?  Is it merely a piece of paper to wave around in the air crying “I got a contract?”  The bidders should have been aware the contract to pick up the trash started on July 1 not October 1 when the bids were solicited and submitted.

Is it the policy for the city to ask for bids with “If your bid is awarded, the contract can be change to any date at you conveyance?

“Does the new bidding contract have the date of beginning on July 1 or October 1” 

Will all future city contracts be awarded under the same policy of beginning work at your convenience?   

Two words.

Done.Deal.

Now get over it.  Or hire a private hauler.  I'm guessing you have that choice in Tulsa...do you?

[Townsend]

What happens if your day is a holiday? 

[shadows]

Two words.

Done.Deal.

Now get over it.  Or hire a private hauler.  I'm guessing you have that choice in Tulsa...do you?

That is the trouble with bidding as most contracts are a done deal and when someone wants it put on the table in order for the generations that are coming after us will understand why a grand jury was call from out of state to look in operations of the runaway procedure of placing a lean on their children livelihoods that are not even born.  

[TeeDub]

What happens if your day is a holiday? 

In BA they come the next day....   Good question for Tulsa.

[carltonplace]

Carts to start distribution on July 16th; current recycling suspended until the carts are delivered.

I wasn't aware of this part. So from now until I receive my new big blue I need to go to the MET?

[Hoss]

I wasn't aware of this part. So from now until I receive my new big blue I need to go to the MET?

From July 1st until you get big blue, yes.

I'm also trying to find out how holidays will be handled, as there are two in the transition (Independence Day; Labor Day).  It won't affect me either way since I will have Tuesday pickup, but I'm sure those with Monday pickup are interested...as well as the July 4th Wednesday.

EDIT: It appears as though the service will pick up trash the following day if your assigned pickup day is a holiday.  Good.

[DolfanBob]

By that map it looks like Wednesday will be a quick pickup day.
1:30 Marshalls all around (see how I snuck that in there) carry on.

[Townsend]

So we got our trash picked up by the new contractor this morning.

It was the same giant pile of crap truck that doesn't look like it would pass inspection to drive in a junkyard much less at high speeds.

It made me want to ask, will this contract also provide for the new CNG trucks or did that go to the wayside?

[Conan71]

So we got our trash picked up by the new contractor this morning.

It was the same giant pile of crap truck that doesn't look like it would pass inspection to drive in a junkyard much less at high speeds.

It made me want to ask, will this contract also provide for the new CNG trucks or did that go to the wayside?

You can bet they will over promise and under deliver.

[Townsend]

You can bet they will over promise and under deliver.

Found an answer.  I misunderstood this is interim and not actually the new contractor.

http://kwgs.com/post/tulsas-trash-transition-day-1

Tulsa,  today, begins a transition to its new refuse and recycling system, incorporating several of the new program elements , according to the Tulsa Authority for the Recovery of Energy (TARE).

Tulsa's new collections hauler for the upcoming refuse and recycling system, NeWSolutions, is slated to begin picking up residents' trash starting July 1. As a result, services will change on July 1, and rates will be decreased during the interim three-month period before the new system begins on Oct. 1.

Tulsa's current trash collection system is based on a contract that is set to expire June 30 after more than 30 years. The City's new refuse and recycling program is scheduled to begin Oct. 1 and an interim collections service has been planned to run from July through September.

Although the current trash hauler, Tulsa Refuse Inc., had been identified as a likely provider for trash service during the interim period, it recently became apparent to TARE and City of Tulsa Solid Waste Services staff that the consortium is unable to maintain sufficient service past June 30.

"We hoped the current contractor would be able to enter an agreement with us to pick up residential trash during the interim period, but because their operations have diminished, we must move forward with an alternative plan," said Cheryl Cohenour, TARE chairwoman. "We now have an effective solution that will reduce customers' rates and transition the community slowly into the new program. This approach ensures trash will be picked up during the transitional period, as well as when the new system begins in its entirety in October."

The Interim Plan

 

Schedules

Collection routes and trash pickup schedules for each Tulsa neighborhood also have been determined based on five major zones throughout the city, each with a corresponding day during the week in which trash will be collected for that area. A map showing the collection zones and days can be found online.

Northwest Quadrant - City Services Continue
The only area not yet affected by this interim collection period involves residents living in the northwest quadrant of the city, where a cart-based collection system has been in place for a number of years.

Recycling Services suspended until new carts arrive
Recycling pickup services provided by the City of Tulsa will be temporarily suspended for several weeks until the new recycling carts are received by residents. Distribution of the new refuse and recycling carts for all Tulsa residents will occur between July 16 and Sept. 23. Residents may begin to use the new refuse and recycling carts as soon as they are received.

Although recycling will only be delayed for a few weeks, Tulsans with recycling needs are encouraged to bring their recyclable materials to the Metropolitan Environmental Trust (MET), which accepts materials at a number of locations. A list of MET locations is available online.

Rates and Rules
Tulsans will continue to have unlimited, curb-side disposal through September but trash pick-up will change from twice-a-week to once-a-week service, resulting in a base rate decrease to $10.52.

"We appreciate NeWSolutions' willingness and ability to work with the City to expedite a detailed plan for interim collection services," said City of Tulsa Solid Waste Services Manager Eric Lee. "We will remain focused on providing uninterrupted refuse collections and ask for residents' patience as we begin this transition."

The new refuse program will feature a new fleet of trucks that will operate on compressed natural gas and be equipped with either a semi-automatic cart tipping system or a fully-automatic robotic arm. The trucks will be used during the transition period but because the new carts will not be delivered until July 16, service workers will manually pick up the trash, as is done with the current system.

This will require residents to bag all trash, whether they are using their own trash receptacle or not. The TARE board is working with Tulsa City Council to propose a City ordinance requiring citizens to use bags.

However, once residents receive and begin using their new recycling carts, bags are not necessary for recycling. All recyclable materials can be placed into the cart, without bags or otherwise separating the materials.

[Hoss]

Found an answer.  I misunderstood this is interim and not actually the new contractor.

http://kwgs.com/post/tulsas-trash-transition-day-1

But that article still says they will be using the trucks during the interim period.  Does that mean they have them?  Are they being phased in?

My scheduled pick up day is tomorrow, and since I'm on vacation, I'll be able to see for myself.  Town, when did the truck make it to your residence?  I'm talking time of day, not which day.  I know what kind of smartass you are. 

[RecycleMichael]

So we got our trash picked up by the new contractor this morning.

It was the same giant pile of crap truck that doesn't look like it would pass inspection to drive in a junkyard much less at high speeds.

It made me want to ask, will this contract also provide for the new CNG trucks or did that go to the wayside?

I know those trucks. The only reason they are still on the road is that the maggots are holding hands.

The first two CNG trucks arrived today. By October 1, the should all be in.

[Townsend]

Town, when did the truck make it to your residence?  I'm talking time of day, not which day.  I know what kind of smartass you are. 

About 8 this morning.

I'm an Irish Smartass.  We smartass exponentially with Guinness.

[Hoss]

About 8 this morning.

I'm an Irish Smartass.  We smartass exponentially with Guinness.

Wow, I'll be curious to see when they pick my trash up.  TRI up until 2006 picked it up before dawn.  Over the course of the next 6 years, it kept getting further and further into the day.  Last pickup on last Thursday was actually around 2pm (which was early for them recently).  They had been averaging about the time I got home from work (between 4:30 and 5pm).  Sometimes not picking it up until 7 or 8pm.

[Townsend]

Wow, I'll be curious to see when they pick my trash up.  TRI up until 2006 picked it up before dawn.  Over the course of the next 6 years, it kept getting further and further into the day.  Last pickup on last Thursday was actually around 2pm (which was early for them recently).  They had been averaging about the time I got home from work (between 4:30 and 5pm).  Sometimes not picking it up until 7 or 8pm.

Yeah, ours was about noonish.