The Sort It centre at Carsons Road in Mangotsfield will be closed to the public for two weeks next month for repairs and improvements which it is hoped will cut down on queues.
The works will be carried out between 16th and 30th November. Residents needing to get rid of household waste and recycling during that time will have to use the other South Gloucestershire sites at Yate, Thornbury and Little Stoke.
The entrance to the centre and transfer station at Mangotsfield is in need of repair as the surface is starting to degrade and break apart. The work will involve the complete removal and replacement of the concrete base. At the same time three more parking bays will be created to speed up the wait.
Meanwhile the South Gloucestershire councillor for the area, Ian Adams, says there are traffic and safety concerns around the Carsons Road centre and he has received numerous calls from residents.
There have been occasions when bin lorries waiting for the weighbridge inside the entrance have been queuing up outside, causing “chaos”, particularly during the school run.
Cllr Adams said options has been looked at to widen Carsons Road to create a filter lane to the Sort It centre but it was sandwiched between protected common land on one side and privately held land on the other. As such, whilst it would technically be possible to do this, it could cost upwards of £500,000 of taxpayers’ money, as well as requiring a lengthy legal process.
He said: “Whilst the council is doing all it reasonably can to address Sort It centre capacity in a financially responsible manner, a key factor affecting traffic at the site is driver behaviour. There are reports of dangerous driving in the area, as impatient residents take incredible risks on Carsons Road.
“To address this I will be getting in touch with the local Safer Stronger partnership and will also be getting in touch with police to ask for their assistance.”
He added that action was already being taken to tackle excessive van usage of the centre, where those disposing of commercial waste often “monopolise” bays for as long as 40 minutes. Vans will now be restricted to a maximum of 12 visits per year to clamp down on this.
And with data collected suggesting that a number of people using the centre come from outside of South Gloucestershire, he said the pre-registration system being put in place was already showing results.
“Furthermore Section 106 contributions from developers building houses in the North Fringe will allow us to open a brand new Sort It Centre in the North Fringe, which will further act to reduce traffic visiting the Mangotsfield site,” said Cllr Adams.
The council has a webcam facility to allow residents to check how busy Sort It centres are before setting off on the journey. Images are streamed live on the council’s website.
The Sort it sites are operated on behalf of South Gloucestershire Council by its waste and resource management contractor SUEZ, the new name for SITA UK.
The Yate site is at Collett Way, the Thornbury one at Short Way and the Little Stoke one is in Station Road. However, paper, food and drink cans, aerosols, foil, glass bottles and jars, plastic bottles, plastic packaging, plasterboard, rubble and tyres cannot be accepted at Little Stoke.
