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Refuse collection vehicles are extremely heavy and are often the most frequent heavy trucks to use residential streets. As such, their impact to City streets has long been recognized as a major contributor to street damage.

As shown below, a typical refuse vehicle can have the equivalent impact to a street of over 9,000 sport utility vehicles.

Street pavements are designed based on an empirical method that accounts for soil types, pavement materials, and vehicle loading. The thickness of the pavement section, or conversely the life of the pavement, is highly influenced by the quantity and weight of the traffic it is subjected to. This impact can be correlated to the costs to maintain streets by comparing the vehicle impacts to the total vehicle loading that the pavements were designed to withstand. This effect was analyzed in detail by the  City’s consultant, and their findings were presented in a report that can be read here:  HF&H Report.

Therefore, in order to help maintain our streets, the City, as with other cities in the area, has implemented a Refuse Vehicle Impact Fee. This was accomplished by increasing the existing solid waste franchise fee on July 1, 2018 and dedicating the funds raised by the increase to street maintenance.  The franchise fee is assessed on the City’s refuse hauler, Waste Management, who is allowed by their franchise agreement with the City to pass the cost of the fee on to customers. The franchise fee increase will result in an increase to customers’ trash bills of 11% for residential customers (which is $3.18 per month for a 35 gallon garbage cart, the most common cart size)and about 12% for commercial customers.

All additional funds raised by the franchise fee increase will be used for maintenance of City streets.

Frequently Asked Questions

City Council Staff Report