Traffic entering the Te Maunga Transfer Station has doubled since the Maleme St facility closed to the public. Photo / George Novak
Traffic entering the Te Maunga Transfer Station has doubled since the Maleme St facility closed to the public. Photo / George Novak
A "ticking time bomb" is how one landscaper describes the doubled traffic volumes at Tauranga's only public dump, with another calling it an "accident waiting to happen".
And there are fears the congestion will only get worse as the city's population swells with summer holidaymakers.
The Tauranga City Council closedGreerton's Maleme St Transfer Station — which had been leaking contaminants into stormwater — to the public in August, after it rolled out a new citywide kerbside rubbish and recycling collection.
Since the closure, traffic entering the remaining Te Maunga Transfer Station on Truman Rd has more than doubled from about 300 cars a day to 700, according to the council.
There have been reports of long queues at peak times and tempers flaring, but the council said that, apart from a few grumblings, people have been understanding.
In his experience, entering and exiting the dump was often dangerous, with cars going too fast in and out and struggling to turn right in the congested traffic.
Hall said he almost had a collision with a car he alleged was "doing well over 100km/h". He was able to stop in time "but it could very easily have been a situation".
"The amount of cars in and out of there [the landfill] has almost doubled probably, but with no real safety improvements to the road.
"Nothing will change until there's a crash, and then they'll start thinking about what to do."
He reckoned it could get even worse over summer.
"As soon as Auckland opens up, it's going to become a lot busier. It's just a bit of a nightmare, to be honest."
The entrance to the Te Maunga Transfer Station. Photo / George Novak
Pāpāmoa Lawnmowing owner Adam Sims said the queue was often backed up down Truman Rd.
"When the cars are lined up on the verge (of the road) and cars are flying down beside you, it's pretty gnarly."
He thought the speed limit on Truman Rd should be reduced during peak times to account for the queues.
Another landscaping business owner, who spoke in the condition they were not named, said Truman Rd wasn't wide enough to cope with queues spilling out of the transfer station as well as vehicles driving past.
"It could be an accident waiting to happen."
"You can't get in and out of there [the transfer station] quick enough, and your time's pretty important around here.
"Two refuse stations have been squeezed into one."
He was also concerned about the upcoming holidays.
Tauranga has one dump for residents who aren't eligible for the kerbside collection or need to throw away extra. Photo / Getty Images
"When people start clearing out their places and getting ready for Christmas, I'm sure the [traffic] volume would increase a hell of a lot.
"Tauranga's growing exponentially, and they [the council] aren't accommodating for it."
Another frequent user said safety would be improved by adding a turning lane for the transfer station. He said wait times were "substantially more" since the closure of Maleme St.
"When the public go there, they've just got one thing on their mind and that's to get to the dump, so they'll pull in front of other cars and things like that.
"There's often roadworks along the road. It just ends up a bit of a mess."
The council's sustainability and waste manager Sam Fellows said some of the increase in traffic at Te Maunga was down to good weather, which meant more gardening time and home tidying.
Sustainability and waste manager Sam Fellows. Photo / George Novak
Fellows said most customers had been understanding.
"We have received the odd grumble about waiting in line, however, most people are understanding and patient about the situation and respectful to our staff."
Fellows said the council was doing a number of things to help lessen wait times.
Te Maunga had doubled its staff numbers, and the lanes on Truman Rd are being widened to help with traffic flow.
He also said new weighbridge technology was introduced this month, which reduced the average time customers spent at Te Maunga by 30 seconds.
"While 30 seconds may not sound like much, thousands of dockets are generated each year so this time saving soon adds up and will help provide a faster experience."
Fellows said people should try to avoid using the landfill from Friday to Monday from 10am to 2pm because those were peak times.
The council previously cited environmental issues and reduced public need after the citywide kerbside collection launch as reasons for closing the Maleme St Transfer Station to all but commercial waste companies and account holders.
The rates-funded kerbside collection includes bins for rubbish, recycling, glass and food scraps, with a garden waste bin costing extra.
