Tel:0161 766 3330
Open Mon-Fri 9.30am-3.30pm
Before we start, we need to acknowledge that the life of a Busy Bins worker isn't like the old soft core shows of The Life of a Window Cleaner, or Milkman....our days are a LOT less boring & raunchy, unless you think waste is sexy of course!
You will have been pottering around Manchester & definitely spotted our big green machines plodding along, picking up rubbish, emptying bins and keeping Manchester waste free...however, have you ever wondered what happens in the day in a life of a Busy Bins worker?
Well, in this blog, we will be taking you behind the scenes of Busy Bins. Letting you know exactly what each day looks like, we will give you a clue....it involves collecting bins & shouting at our competitors like Biffa.
So step into the world of a typical day of a Busy Bins worker, as told by them,...
Everyone loves a 5am start!
Right?
Right?
Well, that is when the alarm goes off. Up: Shower, Teeth...no time for brekky. We can get that on the road.
Where my keys? Where My Phone? Shout out to Britains Got Talent for that one!
Phone & Keys in hand, Steel toes on my feet, I head to the Busy Bins depot in Heywood.
The shutters are already up & as usual Josh & Mike, the owners, are in early preparing the routes & trucks.
What is the first job we do?
Flick the Kettle on. No big job starts without a brew.
Once we are fully replenished, I enter the office to collect my hi vis, keys & today's routes.
The routes are already prepared & have been placed onto the tablet ready for collections.
Mike assigns the routes to each individual driver, ensuring that if there are any dodgy collections or tough spots to collect bins, he will let every driver know and run through the operation with them.
Today, I’m on the Bury route with a mix of residential collections and commercial stops.
Fail to Prepare, Prepare to Fail.
With route in hand, I head to my truck, checking that everything is in working order.
The hydraulic system is key for lifting heavy bins, so I make sure it’s operating smoothly.
We also have to ensure and check that everything else like reversing cameras, horn, lights all work correctly as well.
I also verify that my route sheets and equipment, like gloves and masks, are all accounted for.
After grabbing the keys, I climb into the cab & hit the road.
The city is just waking up as I navigate through quiet streets. My first few stops are residential, where I collect the usual general waste bins.
It’s a rhythm I know well, especially with today's' route.
When you do the job for as long as I have (10 years) you get to know the ins and outs of each route.
It's not the glitz and glamour of saving people from burning buildings or performing life saving surgery...but we do have some challenges along the way.
At my third stop, I encounter a van parked directly in front of a set of bins.
Every drivers worst nightmare....parallel parking time!
It is not as easy as whipping a hatchback into a parking space...driving something that is between 25 to 35 feet long can cause some serious issues if not handled correctly.
Mid-morning, one of our drivers will switch gears for a few junk removal jobs.
This could be anything from a suspiciously stained old mattress (No questions asked here) or a full house clearance.
Hey, its back breaking work, but someone has to do & there is something that is very rewarding about seeing a cleared, tidy space, that was once full with junk.
The part we all look forward too.
Where is the best place for a meal deal? Tesco? Boots? (If you know you know) Asda?
MY GO TO MEAL DEAL: CHICKEN & STUFFING SANDWICH, WALKERS SALTY V'S & FULL FAT COKE (nothing else comes close)
Rate my meal deal? We know it is elite.
During lunch, I will catch up with colleagues or give a pal a ring (Yes, I do have friends outside of work)
When we are driving as a full time job, it is vital that you follow the law and take a break when your driving clock tells you.
If you don't & get pulled over for any reason, Busy Bins could face a steep fine & I could be banned from driving. This is why taking breaks is crucial and why when you see lorries parked up it's not from laziness.
Back on the road, the afternoon route takes me through the tight, bustling streets of Manchester.
Traffic is heavier now.
My next stop is Market Street, Bury...there are plenty of shops that we service around there, but it can be a bit of a squeeze with traffic and tight spaces.
One of the highlights of the day is interacting with customers.
A young girl watches in awe as I operate the hydraulic lift like the pro I am (I struggled to get the bin on the lift at least 5 times)
Her mother smiles and tells me her daughter wants to be a “bin truck driver” when she grows up. It is still crazy to me after all these years, how obsessed young children can be with lorries & bin trucks.
We do a Busy Bins Lego Truck competition every year, which children love!
The amount of children in the UK, that stop us on the street or who are stood in their window with their mouth wide up watching the bin truck reverse backwards.
The day winds down with a few more stops, including some end-of-route checks to ensure no bins are left uncollected.
It’s a satisfying feeling to know the route is complete and that we’ve made a big difference to the rubbish around the Manchester area.
Once the lorry is full and no more waste can be collected, before heading back to the depot,
I take a trip to the Waste to Energy Facility, where we tip all our waste.
The Waste to Energy facility makes sure that all waste is burned & turned into energy, this is a lot more eco-friendly compared to Landfill, where waste is chucked onto each other like the worlds biggest rubbish pile on!
The way the tip works is as follows:
The truck weighs 16.5 tonnes, when it is empty & no waste is on-board.
We enter the depot, wait in line patiently. When it is our turn, we drive our truck onto on a large, industrial set of scales. where it is weighed.
The truck weighs 20.5 tonnes, This means 4.5 tonnes of waste is in the truck.
We will be charged a certain amount per tonne. So this means we are charged for the 4.5 tonnes of waste.
We will then tip this and drive home fully empty and feeling light as a feather.
I usually get back to the depot at around 4pm
Returning to the depot, I park the truck inside the warehouse. This is to ensure that all the trucks are safe and secure at night.
There's always a sense of accomplishment at the end of another long day.
No time for small talk...it is time to get home for tea...first thing is always food!
As the sun sets, I hang up my vest and lock up my truck, reflecting on another busy day at Busy Bins.
As I head home, I get a call from my partner. They have decided that they aren't hungry, but are hungry, but don't know what they want and say no to everything I offer to them,,,sound familiar?
We will go home, read a book (How riveting we know) then get our head down ready for another day.
Throughout the day in the life of a Busy Bins worker, there are many challenges that we will face.
It is not just waste collection and reaching those tough areas for waste collecting. There are other drivers to watch out for, especially with road rage flying and impatient people.
Everybody wants to be somewhere, yesterday, so dealing with unpleasant drivers can be a bit of a pain.
The days are long and traffic and people can make it longer, but in the end it is all worthwhile. Especially when you know that you are helping homeowners and businesses keep on top of their waste!
Here are some reasons to use us for your waste collections:
If you wanted to speak to a waste expert about your waste needs or want to know more about the service that we can offer to you, please give us a call on 0161 766 3330 and we would be more then happy to help!
Who knows, one of our drivers could be having a conversation with you soon!
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