Public Works
Department Overview
The City of Binghamton Department of Public Works, with a staff of 172, is responsible for providing the following services:
- City-owned buildings and grounds maintenance, including vacant property maintenance.
- Fleet management of more than 300 vehicles.
- Road maintenance, including:
- Paving operations
- Pothole repair
- Snow and ice removal
- Street cleaning
- Solid waste and recycling
- City Garbage bags provide fair system for Solid Waste Disposal
- White goods (large appliances) and metal collection
- Yard waste collection
- Street lighting
- Traffic signs and traffic markings maintenance
Collection Schedule For 2012
See the Garbage Collection Zone Map for when garbage is picked up in your area. Downtown has special considerations - see map here.
Monday: Yard waste will be collected everywhere in the City of Binghamton, unless there is a holiday in the week. If there is a holiday in the week, there will be no yard waste collection. Please Note: Yard waste is collected only between the first monday in March and the last monday in November. Please see news releases for occasional exceptions.
Tuesday: All residents south of the Susquehanna River will have collection of official City bags, recycling, and large trash items. (If a holiday falls on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday, your collection will be MONDAY).
Wednesday: All of the First Ward, Second Ward, Center City, and those Westside residents that are east of Chestnut from Leroy to Main and north of Leroy from Chestnut to Front Street, including those sections of Chestnut and Leroy Streets, will have collection of official City bags, recycling and large trash items. (If a holiday falls on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday your collection will be TUESDAY).
Thursday: All Westside residents that are west of Chestnut from the river to Main and south of Leroy from Chestnut to Front Street, excluding those sections of Chestnut and Leroy Streets, will have collection of official City bags, recycling and large trash items. (If a holiday falls on Thursday or Friday, your collection will be Wednesday).
Friday: All Eastside and Northside residents will have collection of official City bags, recycling and large trash items. (If a holiday falls on Friday, your collection will be THURSDAY)
Downtown
Please see the downtown refuse collection map for full details.
2012 Holidays
The City of Binghamton will observe the following holidays in 2011, thus altering the garbage collection schedule:
| New Year's |
Monday, January 2nd |
| Martin Luther King, Jr. Day |
Monday, January 16th |
| President's Day |
Monday, February 20th |
| Good Friday |
Friday, April 6th |
| Memorial Day |
Monday, May 28th |
| Independence Day |
Wednesday, July 4th |
| Labor Day |
Monday, September 3rd |
| Columbus Day |
Monday, October 8th |
| Thanksgiving |
Thursday, November 22nd |
| Christmas |
Tuesday, December 25th |
| New Year's Day |
Tuesday, January 1st, 2013 |
Winter Refuse Collection Schedule
The Winter refuse collection schedule is new this year and runs from January 9, 2012 (2nd Monday) through March 2, 2012. Yard waste collection resumes on March 5, 2012 (1st Monday) until November 26, 2012 (last Monday). With winter refuse collection beginning on Monday, the City can more easily make up for likely disruptions to refuse collection caused by winter weather, without having to carry-over collection and further disrupt service into the weekend.
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Disposal Rules for Garbage, Recyclables, Yard Waste and Trash
GARBAGE: Must be placed in an official City bag. This means everything that can fit in an official City bag must go into an official City bag. This includes clothing. Medium and large City bags are available for purchase at a variety of retail stores located in the City of Binghamton. Small City bags are available only at the City Treasurer's office located on the 2nd floor of City Hall.
- Latex-based paint must be fully dried and placed next to or within garbage bags. Liquid paint and oil-based paint are not accepted.
- Broken glass should be wrapped up within garbage bags so as not to pose a hazard to sanitation crews
- Refuse Containers/Garbage Cans should be watertight and weatherproof, with well-fitting covers, handles for lifting, no larger than 33 gallons and weigh no more than 50 pounds when full.
YARD WASTE: Collected weekly on Monday only. (Unless a holiday falls on a Monday.) Please Note: Yard waste is collected only between the first monday in March and the last monday in November. Please see news releases for occasional exceptions. Yard waste includes any and all parts of trees, shrubbery, grass, flowers, and similar organic waste.
• Branches must be less than four (4) feet, less than four (4) inches in diameter, and must be bundled with string or rope. (No wire.)
• Maximum weight for bundles is 50 lbs.
• All other yard waste must be placed in an open top container no greater than 33 gallons, or in a compostable paper yard waste bags.
• Maximum weight for each bag or container is 50 lbs.
• No more than 8 containers and/or bags per property will be collected per week.
• Raking leaves into the street or along the curb line is prohibited.
TRASH: Collected on the same day as your official City bag. Please separate your trash items from your official City bags. To be collected without the issue of a violation, trash collection stickers must be used. Read about this legislation here. Trash collection stickers are available at many grocery/convenience stores and pharmacies in the City of Binghamton. Trash is anything that is too large or too heavy to fit inside the official City bag. Items such as clothing and Styrofoam (broken down) belong in an official City bag. The use of city bags and trash collection stickers (partial pay-as-you-throw system of disposal) prevents waste of our city’s resources to dispose of trash brought in from outside the city and helps increase the recycling volume and control cost to taxpayers. This also prolongs the life of our landfill by reducing the volume of Municipal Solid Waste. Since the implementation of the Trash Sticker requirement, we have reduced Municipal Solid Waste in the City by 18% = $93,280 savings.
Household Appliances:
• Refrigerators (NYSEG offers a $30 and 6 free CFL lightbulbs incentive to come pick up your old second refridgerator. Details here)
• Washers
• Dryers
• Air Conditioners
• Vacuum Cleaners
• Hot Water Heaters
• Home Furnaces
All household appliances will require one sticker each. Place the sticker on the appliance so it is clearly visible to the sanitation crews. The Binghamton Public Works dispatch office must be called at (607) 772-7020 to schedule a pickup of all metal appliances.
Household Furniture:
• Couches
• Mattresses
• End Tables
• Tables
• Chairs
• Bed/bed frames
One sticker will be required for each item. A mattress and box spring each will require one sticker each. Each chair will require one sticker. Bed frames less than 50 pounds must be bound and have one sticker.
Construction Material:
• Lumber
• Drywall/Plaster
• Doors
• Flooring
• Carpeting
• Windows
• Tile
• Roofing Material
Lumber such as 2X4s and wood flooring must be free of nails, under 5 feet in length, bundled and tied, and must not exceed 50 pounds. Each bundle will require one sticker.
Pieces of drywall, plaster, tile, flooring and roofing must be placed in a disposable container (such as a cardboard box) with one sticker on each box. The volume of material should not exceed the equivalent of three 32 gallon containers per pickup.
Carpeting that exceeds five feet in length and/or is greater than 50 pounds must be cut and tied with one sticker per bundle.
Masonry Materials:
• Masonry materials (such as brick and concrete) are considered clean fill and will not be collected.
Miscellaneous Materials:
• Materials that may not be suitable for green bags should be bundled and tied or placed in a disposable container and weigh no more than 50 pounds. Each container/bundle requires one sticker.
Questions:
• For any item or condition not described above, please contact the Binghamton Public Works Dispatch Office at (607) 772-7020.
RECYCLABLES: Must be clean and placed together in an official Broome County recycling bin. Recycle Bins can be picked up at any of the fire stations located in the City of Binghamton, or at the Department of Public Works, 3rd floor of City Hall. Items accepted include:
PAPER
• Newspaper, magazines, catalogs, junk mail, manila folders, envelopes, brown paper bags
• White, colored notebook and fax paper
• Soft and hard cover books
• Wrapping paper (non-metallic)
No blueprints, carbon copy paper, metallic paper, tissues, napkins, paper towels, paper cups,
paper plates or egg cartons
CARDBOARD
• All Cardboard Boxes
• Pizza boxes
• Corrugated boxes (wavy middle layer)
• Single layer cardboard (cereal boxes)
No wax covered cardboard (can scrape off wax with your finger nail), mold covered or food
contaminated material
CARTON
• Milk and juice cartons
GLASS
• Clear, brown and green (jars and bottles only)
No window pane glass, mirrors, ceramics, plates, cups or light bulbs
PLASTICS
• Food and beverage containers
• Detergent and Shampoo containers
No plastic bags, plastic film, styrofoam, automotive fluid containers, toys, small appliances, utensils, cups, plates or flower pots
METALS
• Tin and steel food and beverage cans
• Aluminum pans, cans and clean foil
No pots, pans, bowls, utensils, cookware, hangers or scrap metal
Further recycling information may be obtained from the Broome County Solid Waste Office (763-4450) or the City's Dispatch Office at 772-7020.
METAL COLLECTION: To arrange for a pickup of large metal items (appliances, gutters, etc.), call the DPW Dispatch office at (607) 772-7020.
GARBAGE CONTAINERS: Shall be watertight and weatherproof with tight fitting covers and two substantial handles for dumping. Garbage containers are to be no larger than 33 gallons and shall not exceed 60 pounds when full.
PROHIBITED MATERIALS: The following items are prohibited for pickup at curbside and may be disposed of at the Broome County Landfill:
- Any garbage or trash brought in from outside the City
- Excessive construction, reconstruction and/or demolition materials. Contractor generated debris will not be picked up by the city. It is the contractor's responsibility to remove all job related construction debris.
- Tires, oil, batteries, stones, dirt or masonry materials
- Hazardous waste
- Electronics - waste haulers and waste management facilities (landfills) are prohibited from disposing electronic waste as of 1/1/2012. Read details here.
HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE: Call Broome county Solid Waste at 763-4450 or visit their website.
DISPOSAL ALTERNATIVES: (Ways to reduce solid waste and save tax money)
Compliance with City of Binghamton Garbage Disposal Rules and regulations is required. Failure to comply may result in violations or assessment of fines to the property owner.
