Privatizing NW Tulsa trash hauling

Wednesday, April 27th 2005, 10:42 am

By: News On 6

The city of Tulsa could get out of trash hauling business by the end of June. The city took bids Wednesday on privatizing the last section of town where city employees pick up the trash.

News on 6 reporter Emory Bryan. Anyone who doubts the hard work of city employees should watch trash truck number 7. These guys run to get the trash, because once they cover the route - they can go home.

Keith Scott: â€œround here pretty much around 3 or 2 o'clock we get to go home, that's why I like it, I like it a lot.â€ Keith Scott and Carlos Dumas like the job and don't want any changes. Carlos Dumas: â€œI probably wouldn't got to work for someone else, the only reason I'm here is the city has great benefits and everything, the hours are really great.â€

City employees haul trash only in what the city calls the northwest quadrant. Thatâ€™s everything in the city limits north of I-244 and West of Yale. The city wants to see if a contractor can do the job for less than its own employees.

If the city's trash service changes hands - it won't change the service. For people in the northwest quadrant - the pickup will still be once a week and residents will still have to use these carts. The rest of the city changed over to a private contractor in 1979. Before then, dozens of trash haulers competed with the city, and it was tearing up the streets.

City of Tulsaâ€™s Mike Buchert: â€œon a residential street on any particular day you might have 8 or 10 trash trucks come down that street to pick up different people.â€