3 questions about garbage collection in New York

1/ How is garbage collection organized in New York?

• At any hour of the day or night, you’ll see sanitation workers in action on New York’s streets. The New York City Department of Sanitation, responsible for keeping New York clean, is simply the largest sanitation service in the world. It employs nearly 10,000 workers and operates more than 2,100 trucks.
• Teams divide up New York’s 10,000 km (6,200 mi) of streets and avenues every day. More than 10,500 tons of garbage and 1,760 tons of recyclable waste are collected in New York daily. That’s a record!
• In practice, each New Yorker has an assigned collection day. They must place their garbage on the sidewalk the day before collection, between 4 pm and midnight. That’s why you’ll see mountains of trash piling up, especially in Midtown, waiting to be collected.

2/ Why do garbage trucks have two steering wheels?

• If you pay close attention, you’ll notice that most collection trucks have two steering wheels. No, there aren’t two drivers at the same time! 🙂
• The driver sits on the left side to drive the truck from one part of the city to another. Once collection begins at a slower pace, the driver can move to the right side to stay closer to the curb.
• This second driving position is also much more practical for operating the articulated arm that collects bins and glass containers.

3/ How much do New York sanitation workers earn?

• A sanitation worker’s starting salary in New York is $33,746 per year. After 6 months, this increases to $36,607 per year. Not much for living in New York…
• After 5.5 years of service, however, the salary rises significantly to $69,339 per year. That’s enough to motivate workers to stay and attract plenty of candidates!
• Sanitation workers are highly respected in New York. In 1996, the city even honored them by renaming a section of Worth Street “Avenue of the Strongest.”