Department of Public Works announces bus stop recycling pilot

The Detroit Department of Public Works announced a new effort to keep the city clean with a recycling pilot program at bus stops.

The department also unveiled two electric garbage trucks that will be used to collect recycling.   

The pilot program will place 800 new recycling cans at the bus stops.  

Public Works Deputy Director Sam Krassenstein says bottles and cans are the number one thing people throw away when waiting for the bus.  “And that's what we're trying to capitalize on by diverting that to keep that out of the landfill and keep that out of the streets.”  

Krassenstein says the pilot aims to increase recycling rates from 45% to nearly 100%.   

The $500,000 investment was funded by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, DTE, and City Council.   

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The Detroit Evening Report is a three-minute daily round-up of the news that city residents need to know. Stories focus on the concerns, problems, passions and needs of Detroiters – specifically residents of color. On the weekends, we take a break from the news and spend some time with community members. Hosted by Sascha Raiyn, Jerome Vaughn, Tia Graham, Nargis Rahman, and Hernz Laguerre, Jr. Detroit Evening Report is a production of WDET, Detroit's NPR Station.