The overflowing bins on Brighton and Hove seafront at the weekend have prompted the council to switch to its summer collections schedule.
But the news comes with a reminder that litterbugs face being handed a £150 on-the-spot fine.
Brighton and Hove City Council said: “We’ve brought forward our spring and summer seafront waste collection services after thousands of people flocked to the beach last weekend.
“We normally increase our services just before the Easter holidays to ensure we’re on top of bin collections and keeping our seafront clean.
“But with crowds never seen before on the seafront in February, we’ve already started our post-winter services to cope with the number of people descending on the beach.”
Councillor Amy Heley, who chairs the council’s Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee, said: “The seafront was extremely busy at the weekend, especially for this time of year, with the crowds resembling the numbers of people we get on a warm summer’s day.
“As this trend is likely to continue as lockdown eases, it’s very important we have measures in place to cope with the demand.”
Councillor Heley added: “We have almost 400 bins along the seafront that people can use for their rubbish.
“If the closest bin is full, we’re asking people to please find one that isn’t full or take their rubbish home.
“There’s no excuse for leaving litter either on the beach or beside a bin that’s already full.
“If people are prepared to carry food packaging, cans, bottles and plastics on to the beach, they must take responsibility for their litter and take it away and dispose of it properly.”
The council said that it was
- adding an extra 70 large communal-sized black bins
- recruiting extra permanent and summer street cleaning staff
- using extra agency staff
- using two bin emptying trucks instead of one
- putting better signage on the bins
- working with seafront businesses and local tidy-up groups to help tackle the problem of seafront litter
- handing out on-the-spot fines of £150 for littering
Excellent news – much better than blaming visitors.
It is time that we had a serious number of BINS FOR RECYCLING on Brighton and Hove Seafront……