Wheelie fast: Tauranga driver tows bin across city and on highway

The Ford Ranger and bin in tow on State Highway 2. Photo / Supplied

A new kind of rubbish truck has been spotted on Tauranga roads, leaving residents questioning their eyesight.

Sightings and photos of a Ford Ranger towing a rubbish bin in Welcome Bay yesterday afternoon, and on the opposite side of the city State Highway 2 to Katikati, have been widely distributed on Bay of Plenty community pages.

Welcome Bay resident Robbie Shorter had just pulled over when the ute drove past with the dark green bin rolling behind.

"I just looked at the kids and we laughed and laughed. It was like 'Did I just see that?'"

He suspected someone would alert the driver at the traffic lights nearby, but half an hour later he saw another photo of the Ranger and the rubbish bin.

"Then I saw another photo of it on State Highway 2. It would have been going 100km/h. It was nuts."

The Ford Ranger and bin in tow on State Highway 2. Photo / Supplied

Shorter didn't see the driver's face, because the windows were tinted.

"If you had the windows up, the air conditioning on and the stereo going, I guess you wouldn't hear the bin behind you. It was probably full of rubbish if it had the weight to stay put."

When asked if he hoped the driver would come forward, Shorter suspected it was highly unlikely.

"If it was me I wouldn't. You would get taken to town. You'd always be known as 'bin boy' or 'wheelie'. The funny thing was, the bin covered the number plate. I reckon they would have just been taking out the rubbish normally and then totally forgotten.

There are a lot of Ford Rangers around so they're not going to be easily found out. They could take it to the grave if they wanted."

A police spokeswoman said no traffic complaints were made about the bin and truck yesterday.