Bin lorry crews frustrated about accessing streets in Fife due to problem parking have been urged to look at themselves before criticising others.
The Courier revealed last week Fife Council is considering a range of measures aimed at raising awareness of the issues refuse collectors have been facing, with inconsiderate car parkers often blocking the route of bin lorries in a number of streets.
Lamppost and bin stickers are being used to help get the message out, while Fife will also be monitoring a campaign launched by Edinburgh earlier this month which will see crews place warning leaflets, designed to look like fixed penalty notices, on the windscreens of repeat offenders.
A number of residents have contacted The Courier to suggest courtesy is a two-way street.
Denise Wallace, from Glenrothes, said she had repeatedly had to contact Fife Council about the state in which emptied bins were being left outside her 68-year-old mother Mary’s house in Rona Place, with several often blocking disabled access.
She said: “We have no issue with the bins being lined up in front of our garden as it is the easiest collection point.
“What we do have issue with is our gate being blocked when the bin crews abandon the empty bins, blocking access to our car, which is parked in a disabled bay at our gate.
“There has also been occasions when we have returned on bin day to find bins abandoned in the disabled bay.
“I have suggested to the council on numerous occasions that they paint a line from the disabled bay pole in line with the markings of the parking bay as a marker for the bin crews to put the bins beyond it. However, they are not forthcoming.
“They have had plenty opportunity to resolve this issue however nothing appears to be getting done.”
A number of other people have contacted The Courier with similar issues and a reminder has now been issued to staff while out on their daily routes.
Sandy Anderson, waste operations service manager for Fife Council, said: “We do ask our crews to return bins to where they take them from but with over a quarter of a million bins to empty every week across Fife, unfortunately they can’t always return every bin to the exact spot they find them.
“However, I’ll make sure that crews are reminded that they should try their best to avoid blocking driveways or causing an obstruction.”
