Lancashire County Council has announced changes that will make the 'trip to the tip' easier for residents.

From May 14 2003 the council's 23 Household Waste Recycling Sites will be open from 8.00am until 7.00pm every day of the week, 362 days a year. The move is designed to give people the chance to recycle outside their own normal working hours reducing congestion around the sites during peak hours.

More staff will be on hand at each site to offer help and advice creating 100 new jobs around the county and boosting the County Council's commitment to recycling. There will be at least 2 extra staff on site at all times, with the numbers increasing at busy times.

In an innovative move to increase recycling from the sites any waste that is not recycled on site will be sent to a Materials Recycling Facility. Here it will be further sorted and additional recyclables recovered before being sent for disposal.

The council has also responded to public opinion and decided that trade waste, which in the past has caused safety problems at the sites as well as greatly increasing the cost of running the sites for the taxpayer, will be diverted to other facilities. Residents with vans and other trade type vehicles will still be able to take their household waste to the centres under a new permit scheme to be launched on 1st July 2003.

Householders with questions about the improvements can call 0845 0500 957 (local rate).