Recycling Carts Coming, New GEORGE Fares Proposed

The public phase of the last night’s City Council work session included two interesting developments.

Falls Church, long a leader in recycling, plans to introduce carts that will enable residents to better manage their part of the process.  Currently, recyclables are placed in green bins and then set curbside for weekly pickup.  Since expanded guidelines were released last year recycling volume has increased significantly, so much so that some homeowners now regularly require as many as five bins to handle their activity.

The carts, which the City will own, will be obtained at a greatly reduced rate thanks to Falls Church being able to “ride” a contract that its hauler has with Arlington County.  The contract will run for five years with a two year extension.

The GEORGE bus system, which barely survived the recent budget crisis, may see higher fares sometime this summer.  City Manager Wyatt Shields proposed the following rates, which he said are in line with the standard Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority (WMATA) fare schedule:  Cash Fare - $1.35, Smart Card Fare - $1.25, Transfer -  $.75. 

Council members, though not opposed to the increases over the current $.50 fare, suggested that the City conduct additional market research and analysis.  Mr. Shields advised he would consult further with the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission.

The city manager stated that under the new service agreement with Arlington County the platform hour rate for GEORGE will be $76.68, a 23% reduction from the current rate.  WMATA, which now owns the buses, will transfer title to Arlington.