More than 5,100 roll carts delivered to Columbia trash customers

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Roll cart distribution to Columbia residents began on Monday and according to a City Utilities spokesman, roughly 14% of customers have received their roll cart.

Utilities spokesman Matt Nestor told ABC 17 News in an email that as of 2:20 p.m. Tuesday, 5,144 roll carts have been delivered.

Distribution began on Monday. Back in March 2023 the city decided to switch its refuse pickup to an automated system that involves roll carts. The new collection system will not begin until March 4, according to a Jan. 26 release.

According to previous reporting, distribution will start with customers who receive collection service on Mondays. Once Monday customer routes have been completed, crews will then proceed to customers who receive collection service on Tuesdays, then Wednesday routes etc. Nestor estimates that it would take four or five days to complete deliveries to Monday routes.

The city expects this roll out to take four weeks, according to last week’s release. Customers can view delivery schedule updates with the city’s trash and recycling smartphone application, the release states. Updates will also be posted to its Facebook page.

Nestor claims that so far, there haven’t been any reported complaints, “but some customers still have concerns regarding placement of the carts. They should defer to the booklet attached to the cart. If they still have questions, they can contact the City.”

The carts are city property and cannot be altered or decorated in any way. Carts are assigned to a specific address and will have barcodes so that a missing or stolen cart can be brought back to its assigned location, the Jan. 26 release states.

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