Agenda - Council - 01/12/1982 - Laserfiche WebLink

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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I i I BACKGROUND ON COLLECTION. MOST OF TIlE SOLID WASTE GENERATED IN THE TWIN CITIES IS COLLECYED BY PRIVATE HAULERS, AND THERE ARE MANY HAULERS HERE. Solid waste in Saint Paul is collected entirely by private haulers. There are now about 50 haulers licensed by that city to provide collection services. In Minneapolis, part of the waste is collected by private haulers and part of it is col- lected by city crews. There are approximately 40 private hauling companies working in the City of Minneapolis. collection is only partially dependent upon service pro- vided. Some communities receive more service and pay less than other communities. It appears that competition leads to greater efficiency in providing services. THERE ALSO IS AGREEMENT THAT COMPLETELY OPEN, DISORGANIZED COMPETITION IS NOT THE MOST COST EFFECTIVE METHOD OF PROVIDING COLLECTION SERVICE. The size of the private co~npanies varies considerably also. There axe one-truck companies in both cities, as well as at least one company, Browning-Ferris Industries, that operates nationally. The abundance of smali pri- vate hauling companies here makes the Twin Cities unusual, compared to other metropolitan areas. THE EXPERIENCE OF A NUMBER OF MUNICIPAL- ITIES DEMONSTRATES THAT HOUSEHOLDS CAN ENJOY SIGNIFICANT SAVINGS FOR REFUSE COL- LECTION WHEN A NUMBER OF COMPANIES COM- PETE WITIt BOTH PRICE AND SERVICE. In 1975 the Citizens Leag~Je documented that collection costs varied widely among communities in the area, with costs being lowest in communities that contracted for service with private haulers. A 1979 Citizens League survey showed the same resuits. Furthermore, the data showed costs to be especially low in communities that contracted through a competitive bidding system. Recently, a group of residents in the Tangletown neighborhood of Saint Paul joined together to contract for refuse collection through a competitive bid process and realized considerable cost savings over what residents had been paying individually. The League survey in 1979, and the experience of the Tan- gletown Neigliborhood Association showed that price for The Citizens League's 1975 conunittee on solid waste con- cluded that one of the major elements of an efficient col- lection system is organized collection routes. City officials in Minneapolis and Saint Paul also recognize the merits of organizing the collection system. Today, the City of Minne- apolis has an organized trash collection system. According to a recent report issued by the Saint Paul Department of . Public Works, "organized collection would eliminate the many different trucks that presently run down the same streets and alleys. Consolidating routes would increase the productivity and efficiency of the haulers. Fuel and operat- ing costs would be reduced by cutting down on the miles driven and, consequently, reducing air and noise pollution." Saint Paul's collection system remains unorganized, but the city has decided to work toward organizing the system by encouraging haulers to voluntarily exchange customers. There is concern, however, about whether this approach is workable. Two haulers might agree to exchange customers, for example, but it might not be legally possible to prevent a third hauler from soliciting business from those cus- tomers. In recent weeks discussions have started about the possibil- ity of the City of Saint Paul organizing collection by negotiating one contract with a consortium o{'haulers. This policy would effectively eliminate competition among haulers. Consequently, city officials would like to avoid it. -5-