Langford council takes steps to make waste collection cheaper for residents

The City of Langford is taking action to address the needs of residents and the growing population when it comes to waste collection services.   

Under the current service model, waste collection is not handled by the City, leaving homeowners to contract their own garbage pickup through private operators within the Capital Regional District (CRD). 

Under this open-market system, rates can vary as the operators compete with one another.

In recent years, residents have become increasingly frustrated with high costs, overflowing garbage cans, illegal dumping, noise from multiple garbage trucks and growing traffic congestion in neighbourhoods. 

What Langford city council is putting into action is a service model aimed at delivering better value for residents. 

Given that Langford has grown to a population of over 60,000, and continues to grow, the City believes that waste collection services must be addressed to match the demands of a larger, busier city.

“Residents have been clear that the current system is not working well enough for many households,” said Mayor Scott Goodmanson. 

“As Langford grows, we need services that reflect the realities of a larger city. This is a practical, responsible step that has the potential to reduce costs for residents, cut down on road congestion and noise, and improve the cleanliness and livability of our neighbourhoods.”

Under the new system, waste collection services would be operated independently of the City, it would not be funded through taxation and there would be no City-owned trucks, carts or collection operations. 

This will be made possible by the City going to the open market and seeking competitive proposals from private sector providers through a Negotiated Request for Proposals (NRFP) process. 

The selected contractor would then provide the service and bill households directly, rather than having the City pay for the service, thereby impacting taxes. 

Langford’s hope is that the City can use its negotiating power to achieve savings for residents while not taking on the burden of service themselves. 

According to research conducted by the City and an undisclosed third party, the new system will ensure annual savings for households when compared to what some are currently paying through the existing open-market subscription system. 

The City also says that this system will result in fewer garbage trucks on the road, less noise in residential areas, lower greenhouse gas emissions, reduced wear and tear on roads, improved neighbourhood cleanliness and a more coordinated response to issues such as overflowing bins and illegal dumping.

In addition to Langford going this route for waste collection, the City of Colwood is tagging along on this upcoming NRFP process to gather information about options for its residents. 

As of this publication, no final decision has been made and no service provider has been selected.

Next steps for Langford will see the NRFP process launched, submissions reviewed and finally, an operator will be chosen. 

The aim is to have a new service provider in action by 2027.