THUNDER BAY -- Three and a half months after the City of Thunder Bay reduced the number of garbage containers homeowners can leave at the curb, a garbage truck that was to be pulled out of service simultaneously is still deployed.
No one at City Hall is willing to speculate on when it might be pulled off the road for good.
Up to the end of June, the city's Environment Division was using nine trucks for residential collection.
The active fleet was supposed to be cut to eight vehicles in conjunction with the introduction of new "route optimization" software at the start of July.
Unforeseen problems with the rollout quickly became apparent, resulting in significant delays in curbside pickup, complaints from residents, and a decision by city officials to slow the transition to the new system.
The ninth garbage truck was kept in service as a result, with city administration saying it had an agreement with the Canadian Union of Public Employees to work on transitioning to the downsized fleet over a longer period.
During budget deliberations, eliminating a truck and reducing the curbside limit from three containers to two was projected to save the city $150,000 a year.
CUPE, which represents sanitation workers, objected to the change and lobbied councillors to maintain the existing service level.
Jason Sherband, the manager of solid waste and recycling, told tbnewswatch.com this week the city continues to work toward realigning the collection routes "to eventually get down to the eight...I don't want to put any timelines on that other than to say we're working towards that and the hope is as soon as possible."
Sherband described it as a work in progress.
Councillor Frank Pullia, who chairs council's budget committee, declined to comment on the record when contacted by a reporter about the effect the delay might have on the city's budget. Pullia cited "the sensitivity of the conversion."
In a prepared statement issued Thursday, the city said it is "committed to maintaining the level of service residents are accustomed to while implementing this change."
