Disabled Huntly resident feels "penalised" by Aberdeenshire Council's trial recycling centre system
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A DISABLED Huntly resident feels "penalised" by Aberdeenshire Council's trial recycling centre booking system.
The council put a scheme in place on November 28, that will run until at least July 28, that forbids pedestrians, including those using mobility scooters or wheelchairs, from accessing Huntly Recycling Centre.
Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, pedestrians could access the centre at any time – and under post-Covid rules, when a booking had to be made by motorists, pedestrians were given access between 12pm and 12.30pm daily.
However, new rules – which allow motorists to turn up without a booking – forbid pedestrians from accessing the centre for safety reasons.
An Aberdeenshire Council spokesperson confirmed last week that "pedestrians cannot safely be separated from vehicles at exit and entrance gates and that is a significant hazard to those customers".
Peter McCallum, who lives in Huntly with wife Karen, had a stroke almost a decade ago and has been using a mobility scooter since.
He believes current rules – which are due to be reviewed after July 28 – are unfair and discriminatory.
"It's ridiculous that the centre cannot be closed to cars for half an hour," he said. "That would at least gave us a chance to get ourselves down there.
"What am I supposed to do with recycling? I am being penalised for not having a car, and because I'm disabled.
"I could understand if it was way out of town, but it's next door to a big housing estate and lots of people used to push in prams or wheelbarrows.
"The council should reinstate a period at lunchtime with an appointment system – it worked perfectly well during Covid."
Mr McCallum doesn't believe there's a big risk of pedestrians being hit by cars, given the size of the recycling centre.
He added that he was told by Aberdeenshire Council to put his garden waste in his black waste bin.
"If they are so worried about pedestrians being knocked over, which isn't a great worry anyway, they should reinstate a time for pedestrians to go in," he said.
"Especially when we are being encouraged to be more green, Aberdeenshire Council are making a big deal about recycling and then stop people from doing it.
"I've got compost bins and do as much as possible with them, and I've got a shredder too, but there's some stuff you can't do that with."
Aberdeenshire Council stated previously that they are openly seeking feedback on the trial set-ups at recycling centres across the area.
