Fewer Garbage Trucks to Pass through Upper East Side Streets
Once Marine Transfer Station Opens than Ten Years Ago
25% Reduction in DSNY Waste and Trucks to Marine Transfer Station
Upper East Side, NY – Mayor Bill de Blasio and Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia at a Town Hall with Council Member Ben Kallos announced the New York City Department of Sanitation has agreed to limit the amounts of trash that will be processed by the Marine Transfer Station (MTS) and the number of garbage trucks that will pass through Upper East Side.
The once industrial Upper East Side originally hosted both the East 91st Street Marine Transfer Station and a Sanitation Garage. The landmark asphalt mixing plant at East 90th Street was closed in 1968. The Marine Transfer Station at East 91st Street was part of a network of three Manhattan stations that processed 320 garbage trucks a day until it closed in 1999. The Sanitation Garage at 545 East 73rd Street housed 105 garbage trucks that would wake residents up at 4:30 AM, until the garage was demolished in 2008. In the 90s residents could see several hundred trucks a day and in the 2000s, over one hundred. A new letter from the Department of Sanitation commits to a much lower impact on the community from the new 91st Street Marine Transfer Station.
On Wednesday, January 25, 2018 Department of Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia wrote a letter to East Side elected officials with a commitment to drastically reduce the expected impact the new MTS on the immediately surrounding community. For this change, the letter cites a reduction in the amount of trash being produced by the areas served by the 91st Street MTS as well as continued advocacy from the 91st Street Marine Transfer Station Community Advisory Group, whose members include Congress Member Carolyn Maloney, Senator Liz Krueger, Borough President Gale Brewer, Assembly Member Rebecca Seawright, Community Board 8, Pledge 2 Protect, and Asphalt Green.
According to the Solid Waste Management Plan approved by the City Council in 2006, the East 91st Street Marine Transfer Station was permitted for 5,280 tons of waste per day during emergencies and an average of 1,860 consisting of up to 1,080 tons of residential waste during holiday weeks and 780 tons of commercial waste. On average days, residential waste was planned for 720 tons per day, escalating on peak days to 864 tons per day, and peak holidays to 1,080 tons per day. For residential waste the plan proposed 130 trucks per day.
As per Commissioner Kathryn Garcia, the East 91st Street MTS will process only residential waste collected by the New York City Department of Sanitation only from community districts 5, 6, 8 and 11. Over a decade ago these districts created over 720 tons of trash per day. In 2017 thanks to community efforts to recycle and compost, the same four districts created only 540 tons per day. Because there is a decrease of 180 tons of trash that has to get processed, there will be 25% fewer trucks and trash traveling through Upper East Streets up to the East 91st Street MTS.
“We’ve spent four years fighting the Marine Transfer Station and pushing for a smarter way to handle our city’s waste, which is already paying off with a 25% reduction in trucks and trash,” said Council Member Ben Kallos. “We must continue our fight to stop the Marine Transfer Station from opening, if it opens see it closed, and spend every moment reducing waste through diversion, such as reusing, composting and recycling.”
“Less garbage is good news if it means there will be fewer trucks on our streets. We need to make sure that the Department of Sanitation keeps its commitment and that commercial garbage or residential garbage from additional areas are not diverted to our residential streets,” said Congress Member Carolyn Maloney.
"While Community Board 8 has opposed the East 91st Street MTS since its proposal and continues to have concerns about the use of the facility by private carters, we are very pleased to see the progress our community has made to reduce it's trash output," said Alida Camp, Community Board 8 Chairwoman. "DSNY has done an excellent job making it easier than ever for New Yorkers to cut down on their waste -- and Upper Est Siders are doing their part. However, this trend towards zero waste leaves serious questions about the long-term usefulness of sites like the MTS and how they will be used in the future. At our February meeting, CB8 approved a resolution calling on the Mayor to conduct a feasibility study into viable options for repurposing the MTS into a space that the city can enjoy, as opposed to its use as a transfer station. We look forward to hearing the city's response to our resolution."
“Pledge 2 Protect’s President, Kelly Nimmo-Guenther, agrees wholeheartedly with Council Member Kallos’ statement and further added, “With the facility opening in Spring of 2019, we are still seeking answers regarding pedestrian safety: inclusive of community traffic safety measures, commercial haulers and their use of the facility and continuous air quality monitoring/reporting. Our children especially and the community must be given all protection available with the operation of the E. 91 st St. MTS in such a dense residential community.”
According to the most recent analysis by the New York City Sanitation Department, the East 91st Street MTS will receive a varied number of trucks per day depending on the day of the week and time of day. Based on past information the facility would receive a low of 37 trucks on Fridays in the month of March to a peak of 63 on Tuesdays in May. Most days the facility will receive between 40 and 50 trucks. These daily numbers pale in comparison to the facility’s maximum capacity of 30 trucks per hour.
The Department of Sanitation has also promised not to cue up garbage trucks on York Avenue at any time. This is in part because the facility can process as many trucks in an hour or two as it expects to receive in a day. The Department of Sanitation has also committed to post a traffic monitor at the base of the ramp to guide vehicles into the facility for added safety.
The Department of Sanitation has also released planned garbage truck routes to the MTS for Community Districts 5, 6, 8, and 11, which will be in place temporarily until the new ramp is opened on 92nd Street:
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Sanitation Truck Route to East 91st Street Marine Transfer Station from Community District 5 (14th Street to 59th Street from Lexington to 8th Avenues) Priority Tipping Route – Traveling north on 1st Avenue making a right on to East 86th Street heading east one block to make a left onto York Avenue heading north five blocks to make a right on to the ramp on East 91st Street. Priority Route to Garage – Making a left from East 91st Street on to York Avenue heading south five blocks to make a right onto East 86th Street heading west two blocks to make a left onto 2nd Avenue and a right onto East 14th Street heading West to West Street and the Sanitation Garage on Spring Street. |
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Sanitation Truck Route to East 91st Street Marine Transfer Station from Community District 6 (14th Street to 59th Street from Lexington to the East River) Priority Tipping Route – Traveling north on 1st Avenue making a right on to East 86th Street heading east one block to make a left onto York Avenue heading north five blocks to make a right on to the ramp on East 91st Street. Priority Route to Garage – Making a left from East 91st Street onto York Avenue heading south five blocks to make a right onto East 86th Street heading west two blocks to make a left onto 2nd Avenue to East 34th Street heading west to make a right turn on to 11th Avenue to make a right turn into the Sanitation Garage. |
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Sanitation Truck Route to East 91st Street Marine Transfer Station from Community District 8 (59th Street to 96th Street from the East River to 5th Avenue) Priority Tipping Route – Traveling north on 1st Avenue making a right on to East 86th Street heading east one block to make a left onto York Avenue heading north five blocks to make a right on to the ramp on East 91st Street. Non-Priority Route to Garage – Traveling west along East 91st Street to make a right on 1st Avenue heading north to turn left on 125th Street heading west to turn right on to Saint Nicholas Avenue proceeding north on Saint Nicholas Avenue and Broadway to turn right onto West 215th Street and proceeding east to the Sanitation Garage. |
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Sanitation Truck Route to East 91st Street Marine Transfer Station from Community District 11 (96th Street to 135th Street from the East River to 5th Priority Tipping Route – Traveling south on 2nd Avenue making a left on to East 90th Street heading east two blocks to make a left onto York Avenue heading north one block to make a right on to the ramp on East 91st Street. Priority Route to Garage – Traveling west along East 91st Street to make a right on 1st Avenue heading north to turn left on 99th Street to enter the Sanitation Garage. The Department of Sanitation will continue to hold regular Community Advisory Group meetings until the facility opens and is committed to monitoring air quality and the moving of the ramp from East 91st Street to East 92nd Street. The text of the letter of New York City Department of Sanitation Commissioner Kathryn Garcia: January 25, 2018 Dear East Side Elected Officials and the Community Advisory Group: Thank you for your continued advocacy and partnership in implementing the city's equitable and environmentally sustainable Solid Waste Management Plan. When fully implemented next year, this plan will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 34,000 metric tons and reduce annual truck travel by more than 60 million miles annually. The marine transfer stations called for in the plan are designed to be state-ofthe-art facilities with negative air pressure systems, rapid roll-up doors, odor control systems, a refuse processing floor 16 feet above the water line, and the shipment of waste by barge in sealed containers. These facilities are designed to be the very best possible neighbors. This is not the East 91st Street Marine Transfer Station of years ago. I am pleased to report that thanks to your work and more importantly the great recyclers in your community, the amount of refuse processed at the MTS will be lower than anticipated during the planning process. The E. 9st Street MTS will take residential waste collected by DSNY only in community districts 5, 6, 8 and 11. In 2003, these four community districts produced more than 720 tons per day of refuse. Last year, the same districts produced less than 540 tons per day. Simply put, less trash means fewer trucks. Based on our most recent analysis, the number of trucks received at the facility will range from a low of 37 on Fridays in March to a peak of 63 on Tuesdays in May. On most days, the MTS will receive on between 40 and 50 trucks. In addition, approximately 8 trucks will dump litter basket waste overnight. The E. 91 st Street MTS is designed to process 30 trucks per hour and hold up to 17 trucks on the ramp. On a peak day the facility can process all the vehicles in a little over 2 hours. As you know, there are occasions when the facility would receive more vehicles. This is particularly true after snow emergencies when collections may have been canceled for several days in a row and the department is catching up on backlogged trash. DSNY has committed as a condition of our New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Permit not to cue on York Avenue at any time. In addition, during all operations an employee will be stationed at the base of the ramp to guide vehicles into the facility. Moreover, DSNY collection trucks are 90 percent cleaner than just a decade ago. And we keep working to make them cleaner and more efficient every year. We appreciate your strong advocacy for your community and will continue to hold regular meetings of the Community Advisory Group regarding the opening and operation of the facility next year, as well as on-going air monitoring, the reconstruction of the E. 91'1 Street intersection and the construction of the E. 92nd Street Ramp. In addition, thank you for your ongoing support in moving your communities toward zero waste, including enrolling buildings in the organics, e-waste, and textile collection programs. I look forward to our continued partnership on this important matter. Sincerely,
Kathryn Garcia
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