Huntly woman feels trial Aberdeenshire Council recycling centre system is penalising non-drivers
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
A LACK of pedestrian access at Huntly Recycling Centre is putting non-drivers at a disadvantage.
That's the view of local resident Janet Gordon, who doesn't drive and relies on accessing the centre by foot.
Trial changes to recycling centre bookings – which were put in place by Aberdeenshire Council on November 28 – have forbidden pedestrian access to centres across Marr.
Access on foot has been removed due to the centre getting rid of its booking system for vehicles.
The council has judged that pedestrians, who used to be able to attend during a 30-minute lunchtime slot, are no longer able to "safely be separated" from vehicles.
The current trial period will end on July 28, when a review will be carried out.
A spokesperson for Aberdeenshire Council said: “The Huntly site is taking part in the trial of changes to recycling centre bookings and is one of the locations where no booking is required for any accepted vehicle at any time.
"As part of the decision to remove the need for bookings, pedestrian access had to also be removed.
"Pedestrians cannot safely be separated from vehicles at entrance and exit gates and that is a significant hazard to those customers when they enter or leave the site.
"The booking system allowed for slots to be provided so that pedestrian-vehicle conflict could be removed.
“The trial will be reviewed after July 28, before deciding if the changes will be kept. We are grateful for all feedback during the trial.
"Any complaints or compliments are included among the criteria for its assessment, as is car counting data, the tonnages of materials deposited, the cost of the materials being disposed of, and feedback from additional customer surveying.”
Local resident Janet Gordon believes she is being put at a disadvantage due to not having access to a vehicle.
"I don't have a car and people are being penalised because of this," she said.
"What are we supposed to do with the rubbish that is too big for the bins? Or, in my case, a lot of gardening rubbish.
"I can go round twice or even three times a week with my garden waste and have seen others with shopping trollies of rubbish.
"It's not fair to be penalised because I don't have a car."
