Global news describes the end of a demonstration project in New York City that installed garbage bins at subway stations. Commenced in 2011, the program expanded to have garbage containers at track level in 39 stations. The problem? The program was too successful. While the whole point was to reduce littering in subway stations, the city found that having the containers contributed to more litter, and to rats.
Of course reducing rubbish bins sounds wrong. “The notion that you’re going to be more efficient by taking away the trash cans, so therefore you won’t generate so many bags of trash to haul away — like the trash was going to magically disappear — I think that probably wasn’t the smartest judgment,” quoted State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli.” Indeed New York City found that the containers led to a higher incidence in trash fires, and depositing of trash on the tracks. And to get rid of trash on tracks? New York City has a “vacuum train”.
The anticipated solution is that everyone will carry their trash out of the station and properly deposit it on the street. With the majority of commuters in New York City used to disposable conveniences, they are used to carrying everything in their hands or buying on the go. On city streets there are lots of trash cans, just not below the ground.
To give you an idea of the size of the subway system, it has 469 stations and moves about 1.76 billion people annually.
Another example of induced demand!
Interesting.
There needs to be a balance, at entry station level inside would help commuters. I recall being in a Swiss city a while ago (Lucerne or was it Berne), where we were downtown. There were no garbage containers outside on street level. And we weren’t near any train station. To us as tourists wanting to be conscientious, it was ridiculous.
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Reblogged this on Sandy James Planner.