Every home in Winnipeg will have a new way to take out the trash by the end of 2012.
Those who toss their trash in large autobins are first in line. The city wants to replace large autobins with the garbage and recycling rolling carts through April and May.
Randy Hanson uses large autobins to throw away his garbage. He says trash can pile up around the bins and the containers take up a lot of room in his back lane.
"It's a little tight and constrained the way it is right now," he said. "So I would say the sooner that they remove them the better for ourselves."
Neighbourhoods with the autobins will see the containers be replaced with automated garbage and recycling carts spring of 2012.
The rest of the city will see the carts between August and October. "I think it might be a progressive move forward," said Hanson. "It might allow us to control our garbage flow a little bit more."
The changes are part of a plan passed by city council last year aimed at reducing the amount of garbage that ends up in the city's landfill.
"Some areas have unlimited garbage collection right now," said Darryl Drohomerski, the city manager for solid waste services. "This puts a limit on it and makes people think about what they're throwing away."
Even though the garbage carts have been in place in some areas of the city for two years, some homeowners aren't sold on the idea.
"I'm somewhat concerned about how much room they're going to take on the backlanes which are already narrow," said Jane Carroll. "For some people I think it's going to be difficult to wheel the bins."
There's a $50 annual fee for the program but that doesn't kick in until everyone has their carts. The move will also pay for yard waste removal. That will start in spring and go through the summer and fall. The city recommends keeping old garbage cans and filling them with grass and leaves for the yard-waste-removal program.
Once the new system is in place, trash pick up will happen for residents in specific neighbourhoods on the same weekday each week, with the exceptions being Christmas, New Year's Day and Remembrance Day.
-With a report from CTV's Jeff Keele
