City to Switch to Grid System for Garbage Pickup

By Chuck Sudo in News on Feb 14, 2011 5:00PM

Mayor Daley is finally ready to implement a change in how the city collects garbage, a plan the Inspector General's office says can save the city up to $64 million in its first two years of use, that every other major American city has utilized for years. The plan? Switching to a grid system instead of he ward-by-ward garbage collection that's been the Chicago Way for time immemorial.

Streets and San spokesman Matt Smith told Chicago New Co-Op that they implemented a pilot grid=based system in an unspecified part of the city last year. The department was so thrilled with the results that they'll be expanding the program throughout the city come spring. Many aldermen have defended ward-based garbage collection on the grounds that it's good customer service. But a grid-based system maximizes efficiency in garbage pickup and, by extension, good customer service