A new free curbside bulky waste program that provides more curbside pickups and self-haul drop offs of oversized items and junk was announced today by Oakland’s waste and composting collection provider Waste Management of Alameda County, Inc.
Beginning November 15, all Oakland residents can schedule a free self-haul appointment to drop materials at the Davis Street Resource Recovery Complex and free bulky curbside pickup at their home or apartment building.
Both the self-haul drop offs and curbside pickups allow all housing units in the city, both single-family homes and apartment units, to dispose of up to four cubic yards of bulky items such as furniture, scrap metal, small consumer electronics, cardboard, extra landscape trimmings and other trash. The curbside collections also allow residents to dispose of additional items above the 4 cubic yards including tires, carpets, mattress, box springs, large appliances, televisions, computer monitors and other consumer electronics.
And, for the first time, the program allows renters in both single-family homes and apartments to directly access the free pickups instead of having to schedule through a property manager or building owner.
The expanded service is an effort by Waste Management of Alameda County, Inc. (WMAC) to help the City of Oakland combat illegal dumping and encourage residents to use WMAC’s free bulky service with the confidence that materials collected will be properly recycled and disposed.
“We’re doing our part to help keep Oakland clean and provide residents with as many opportunities as we can to use a free service that properly disposes of materials,” said WMAC President Barry Skolnick. “We’re working with the city to offer the service to more residents, provide more options for disposal and make scheduling an appointment or drop off as easy as possible.”
“Allowing residents in apartments to directly make appointments is a game changer for this program. It provides equity and inclusion to a program that was always easier for single family property owners to use,” said Harold Duffy, Oakland Public Works Director. “I commend Waste Management for working with the City of Oakland to provide all residents with easy access to properly dispose of Bulky item trash/waste.”
Oakland residents can schedule a Davis Street drop off or bulky curbside pickup appointment by calling 1-888-WM-Bulky. Residents can also visit OaklandRecycles.com/bulky to learn more about the new program.
All appointments will be scheduled in the order of request, but apartment residents will have all pickups schedule during the last week of each month when demand is highest as renters are moving.
For single family home residents, WMAC will make every attempt to schedule appointments within two weeks of the request. At the Davis Street Resource Recovery Complex, up to 50 appointments will be provided each weekday and 100 appointments on Saturdays.
Curbside pick ups will not occur from December 27 through January 14 as WM bulky collection trucks and drivers are dedicated to picking up Christmas trees.
Waste Management is also conducting a multimedia and digital advertising campaign to spread the word about this new program and will be sending information to all residents with detailed instructions on acceptable items, how to make appointments and how to set out materials. Advertisements are scheduled to be placed on bus shelters, on social media sites and in local publications to ensure every Oakland resident knows they have access to this free service.
