Bigbelly helps City of London Corporation put Pedal to the Metal

The City of London Corporation has become the first local authority in the UK to adopt the foot pedal-operated Bigbelly smart station after Egbert Taylor’s waste technology brand, Bigbelly, developed it in conjunction with the council. Eight units have been introduced to make waste disposal more attractive and accessible to residents, tourists and those working in and around the area that have hygiene concerns and are sometimes reluctant to touch the units’ handles with their hands.

“Not only does this demonstrate how every local authority and London borough has its own issues and challenges, but also that Egbert Taylor has the ability, through its brand portfolio, to develop solutions in collaboration with our customers. We now fully expect the foot pedal unit to become a mainstay within the UK’s waste collection landscape.”
Liz Carroll, Area Business Manager for London at Egbert Taylor

The foot pedal system will not only address some users’ hygiene concerns but also assist those with disabilities and children, who may not have been able to easily reach the handles. The new units have also been redesigned to incorporate a plastic, wheeled liner, allowing collection operatives to take out the rigid inner container and wheel it across to the collection vehicle to be emptied. Until now, the liner has been a plastic bag that must be tied, lifted and dragged to the collection vehicle, placing strain on the collection operatives and, as a result of the distance between the units and the collection vehicle, often leaving waste residue on the pavement. Steve Presland, Transportation and Public Realm Director at City of London Corporation, said:

“The City of London is now busier than New York’s Times Square with some bins filling up in only 20 minutes. With Bigbelly’s compaction technology we can fit seven times more waste than conventional bins in each unit, which makes waste collection so much more efficient. However if people are reluctant to lift the lids then we are missing opportunities to collect even more.”

“We spend over £3.5 million a year cleaning the City’s streets. The Square Mile is the world’s leading international financial centre and its workers and residents rightly expect the street scene to be of a very high standard in which to live and work. This new solution could make our streets even cleaner and we look forward to seeing the results.”

Eight foot pedal-operated Bigbelly smart stations have been placed throughout high footfall areas including the Guildhall, Royal Exchange and Whittington Garden. The City of London Corporation is now looking to replace its existing 50 standard Bigbelly smart stations with the new solution.