The boarded-up bins around Gungahlin’s light rail station have finally been removed, making way for pot plants, but some residents are raising new concerns. Photos: Jarryd Rowley.
Bins that were boarded up around Gungahlin’s light rail stop have finally been removed nearly 12 months after they were taken out of operation.
The ACT Government revealed earlier this year that the bins around the stop were boarded up because cleaners struggled to remove rubbish due to their proximity to the light rail track.
A statement from the ACT Government said the original bin placement complies with safety requirements, but their proximity to the light rail tracks has made access difficult and impractical for crews responsible for waste removal.
“Relocating the bins will allow service vehicles to access the area more easily, supporting safer and more efficient operations,” an ACT Government spokesperson said.
“As part of ongoing efforts to improve safety for cleaning and maintenance crews, the four bins located adjacent to the Gungahlin light rail alignment between Hinder Street and Gungahlin Place are being relocated away from the light rail tracks to improve vehicle access.
“While the bins have currently been removed, the footings for the eight bins remain and have been covered with large potted plants.”
Gungahlin local John Mikita has labelled the removal of the bins poor planning, stating that for over a year, pedestrians would simply dispose of their rubbish beside the bins instead of walking to the next location.
“The government does have this reputation of removing bins because it’s just easier to get rid of them than to maintain them, and I think that’s one of the reasons here,” he said.
“The bins, especially the four closer to the actual stop, were used quite a bit. This feels like a case of creating an issue where there wasn’t one.
“All it led to was people throwing their rubbish around where the bins actually were.”
Now that the bins have been removed, Mr Mikita has raised concerns about the footings left behind and the bolts sticking out of the ground.
“It begs the question: why has it taken nearly 12 months to have these bins removed, and why, now that they have been removed, are there just plants sitting on the footings?
“There are now metal stakes sticking out of the ground with a little bit of safety tape wrapped around them.
“It’s taken 12 months to get here; they didn’t do it properly, and because of the state they’re in, they’ll need to come back and do the work again to remove the footing.”
Region has reached out to the ACT City and Environment Directorate to comment on plans to remove the remaining footings.
