Garbage complaints in San Mateo County down

Peninsula garbage customers are logging fewer complaints about missed pickups and other snafus with new provider Recology but some are also voicing frustration with a recent spate of double-digit service rate hikes, according to the overseeing agency.

The call volume is substantially down now over the first few weeks when customers lit up the phones at the South Bayside Waste Management Authority, said spokeswoman Monica Devincenzi.

SBWMA is the 12-agency joint powers authority that contracts with Recology on behalf of its members including Belmont, Burlingame, East Palo Alto, Foster City, Menlo Park, Redwood City, San Carlos, San Mateo, Atherton, Hillsborough, San Mateo County and the West Bay Sanitary District.

Exact call numbers were not immediately available but Devincenzi said the majority are more inquiries about types of programs rather than specific issues.

"It is all greatly improved since the rollout,” she said.

The phone lines at San Mateo County’s Health System, which were also busy in the first few weeks of the year because of disgruntled customers, are also quiet.

The county is no longer receiving any calls or complaints about collections services, said Health System spokeswoman Robyn Thaw.

A Recology representative did not respond to an inquiry about its phone traffic.

Devincenzi said some calls after Recology began its contract Jan. 1 were not unexpected even though both it and the SBWMA tried to head off problems with community workshops and public outreach.

Recology took over from Allied Waste, ending its 10-year contract and bringing new collection carts and schedules.

At the same time, cities and member agencies belonging to SBWMA began notifying customers of, and in some cases already voting on, garbage rate increases including some as high as 38.9 percent.

Although some of customers have questioned why increases are being asked at the same time service has been in question, the timing is coincidental.

Customers may also not fully realize the rate increase components include items not specifically tied to the Recology contract such as paying out Allied’s final bill and tip fees at the Ox Mountain landfill.

Michelle Durand can be reached by e-mail: michelle@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 102.