Bin collections in a road near Avenham Park have been restricted.

Homeowners in Bank Parade must now use a ‘communal bin’ because of issues with bin wagons being able to access the road.

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The road, off Frenchwood Street, now has a six-days-a-week collection from a large waste bin at the end of the street.

But homeowners say the city council is not doing enough and already the road has become a target for fly-tipping.

Preston City Council said it had to cease collections to Bank Parade because of the road being unadopted by the council and because of ‘structural issues’ with the road bearing the weight of a bin wagon.

Tyler Fletcher lives in a shared student house in Bank Parade.

He said: “The bins have always been bad around here because they fill up so quickly with it being a private road and then last week they just took all the bins, like the black bins from outside the houses and they’ve replaced it with one, sort of, I can’t remember, it was like 1000 litre bin.

“The bins on this road used to fill up quickly anyway when there was like 20 of them on the street, and now that they’ve replaced them with a 1000 litre bin it’s just going to fill up really quick and there’s just going to be bin bags all over the street which is just going to be minging.

“And it’s alright for us because it’s a student house we can all walk to the bin fairly easily but there’s neighbours that are disabled, and it’s just going to be rough and unfair for them to have to walk to the bin pretty much every day especially if they’re in a wheelchair or whatever, it’s just not fair.”

One homeowner, who contacted Blog Preston and asked not to be named, said: “The first we knew about this was when on Tuesday 19 March without warning our bins were removed and a letter delivered.

“The letter refers to concerns around the structural integrity of Bank Parade due to passageways under the road.

“They used a 7.5 tonne vehicle, collected all the bins number around 30 and the content, so obviously are not that concerned about the strenfgth of the road.

“The letter states that collections will not resume until the residents provide a structural survey of the road, something we are unlikely to be able to do or afford, surely the council should provide a survey to show why they are refusing to provide the service paid for.

“The council have offered no advice to assist us and have failed to clear the rubbish dumped by people as a result, where rats have been seen and reported. The rubbish is dumped where some properties bins were stored prior to the removal of the bin collection, so It can be assumed the council have failed to communicate with those properties effectively.

“This is one of the main entrances to Avenham Park, on a road where all the houses bar one are grade-II listed and is within a conservation area. There are elderly and disabled living on the road, there has been no consideration of their needs. By taking this action the council have put the health and welfare of residents of Bank Parade and those going to the park at risk.”

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What the city council had to say

Interim deputy chief executive and director of customer services Neil Fairhurst said: “The health and safety of our employees is paramount. The potential structural issues with Bank Parade are a safety concern, and its suitability as to how long it can withstand the weight of larger vehicles is currently unknown.

“For this reason, the decision to temporarily change waste collection provisions at Bank Parade was taken and alternative arrangements put in place as soon as we could. All residents and property owners have been informed.

“If any of Bank Parade’s residents require assistance with the new arrangements, they are asked to use the contact details on the letter to speak with the waste management team.”

The new bin is being emptied Monday to Saturday and the city council says it ‘has sufficient capacity for all residents to use’.

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A council spokeswoman sadded: “The situation is still being monitored.

“No reason residents shouldn’t be able to cope with the temporary arrangements.

“We’re disappointed to hear some residents are not using the facilities provided.”

“For this reason, the decision to temporarily change waste collection provisions at Bank Parade was taken and alternative arrangements put in place as soon as we could. All residents and property owners have been informed.

“If any of Bank Parade’s residents require assistance with the new arrangements, they are asked to use the contact details on the letter to speak with the waste management team.”

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Additional reporting by William Palmer