WESTFIELD- The Department of Public Works (DPW) announced that recycling pickups will be delayed slightly over the next few days due to mechanical issues with two recycling trucks.
Francis Cain, assistant director of the DPW, said that a combination of the July 4 holiday and the age of the trucks lead to them needing repairs, which will impact some residents’ recycling pickup schedules.
Cain said that one truck was returned from the shop on Tuesday, and the other will be returned on Thursday. He added that the two trucks are nearing the end of their life cycle and will have to be replaced in the near future. He said they had already been plagued with problems with those trucks. A line item in the DPW FY20 budget is for the purchase of two vehicles, although Cain said they may wait another year.
“It’s a rough and tough world picking up trash and recyclables,” said Cain. “It is not unusual for the trucks to break down.”
In a post on cityofwestfield.org, the DPW urged residents to keep putting their recycling barrels out for the normal pickup times, and to leave them there even if they haven’t yet been emptied.
Cain noted that the image of two recycling trucks posted on the city website is not of the two trucks in question, but rather two of their older, already replaced trucks.
