Bins not collected on Blackburn alleyway due to 'overgrown vegetation'

Blackburn with Darwen Council said they were aware of the issues behind Whalley New Road in Roe Lee, but the amount of vegetation "was restricting workers from collecting bins".

The local authority also said another site visit was planned to assess the situation.

A councillor said he had been bombarded with calls from angry householders who had seen rubbish pile up in the alleyway.

The council collects rubbish bins every two weeks with recycling and paper bins collected once a month.

Household rubbish in the burgundy bin is meant to be collected every two weeks.

One resident said: “I have spoken to a number of residents and they've all complained to the council, and they got the response that it was ‘unsafe’ for the binmen to empty the bins due to the vegetation building up.

“I, myself, spoke to someone from the ‘cleansing’ department again, she said bags will be provided to residents for the additional rubbish that goes in the burgundy bin, but bins won't be emptied until the next schedule for burgundy bins which will be Monday, October 21.”

Some of the vegetation appears to be encroaching the alleyway through a fence from the adjacent railways tracks.

The main alleyway adjacent to the railway track can be accessed through this alleyway from Whalley New RoadIn correspondence with Network Rail, one resident who complained was told, resources only allowed them to "focus on safety, critical and emergency work" and they "could not do anything at this time".

Strategic director for environment and operations at the council, Martin Eden, said: “We are aware of the issues in this alleyway and have been monitoring the situation for some time. 

“This is one of the longest alleyways in the borough and presents a real issue for our crews in terms of the volume of bins that need to be collected, with over 50 of them, in conditions of vegetation and moss which can become a real hazard in bad weather.

“We understand the frustration this has caused for residents, and we're working to resolve the problem as quickly as possible.

“Our environmental team has received the photos, and it’s clear that while some parts of the alleyway remain accessible, overgrown vegetation is still preventing safe access for our waste collection teams.

"We take the safety of our workers very seriously, and this obstruction needs to be addressed before collections can resume.

“We will be holding a site visit shortly to look at alternative ways to collect bins.

“This may include delivering the bins to a collection point. Currently, residents pick up their bins from a collection point, but rarely deliver them there.

“This would help our teams greatly. We have also provided residents with lilac bags through their letterboxes, in the instance that their bins are full which we would encourage them to use while the issue is resolved.”

Cllr Saj Ali said he has been contacted by a number of residents over the problem.

He said: “I have been bombarded by calls from people living on the stretch.

“When I contacted the council to investigate I was told the workers were struggling with the overgrown vegetation.

“I thought that was a poor answer as I thought they have all the gear and they should be able to pick up the bins as they have been doing for decades.

“In further correspondence I have been told that bins could be picked up the corner one side of Whalley New Road.

“I just feel if the workers who are fit and healthy cannot do that then how we expect a 70-80 year-old person to drag their bins to the corner. Are they not going to slip or fall?

“My concern is that the burgundy bins were not collected as this is household rubbish.

“This is not on.”