City council sorry over missed bin collections

Canterbury City Council has apologised after some collections were missed

Canterbury City Council has apologised after some bin collections were missed in July and August.

The authority said the problems, which were mainly with landfill collections, were caused by a "bedding in period" since new systems were introduced on 1 July.

The council said supervisors were now going out with crews every day and the progress and frequency of collections was being monitored.

The authority said it was also aware of problems with its website, showing roads have had their rubbish collected when that had not happened.

A statement on the council website said the "well overdue" new system was introduced because routes had become inefficient, with trucks travelling longer distances than was necessary.

The statement said: "There has been an inevitable bedding in period. We expected this to last for three to four weeks, but at the moment we are continuing to see an unfinished level of work each day.

"The number of roads going uncollected varies from day to day.

"All of this is being mixed with the traditional summer issues of staff holiday, resulting in greater use of agency workers who are less familiar with the patch, and an increase in roadworks that hamper or entirely prevent access to roads – and in some cases, to several roads."

The council said any householders whose bins have not been emptied can visit its website or call the waste team on 01227 947860.