Rat’s all folks!
The Big Apple’s top officials declared Wednesday that New York’s infamous habit of lining sidewalks with rodent-infested piles of garbage is finally on the way to history’s trash bin — beginning with two blocks in Times Square.
The area’s business district, the Times Square Alliance, and the Department of Sanitation have partnered to run and manage New York’s first two curbside bag collection bins, which will be placed at 41st Street and Seventh Avenue and 43rd Street and Eighth Avenue.
“No matter where I go, I hear the complaints over and over again. Loud and clear, New Yorkers, you want clean streets; you want trash off our sidewalks,” said Mayor Eric Adams. “You’re tired of the rodents, you’re tired of the smell, you’re tired of seeing food, waste and spillage.”
The rollout comes two years after the pilot program was first initially announced in March 2020, just as the coronavirus pandemic slammed into the city.
The goal is to put the trash bags in a centralized storage location that will keep the bags off the sidewalks and away from the rats trying to rip their way in for food.
The trash containers will be placed in Times Square. Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
The pilot program was announced in March 2020. Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office“These sealed containers are in a spot where bags of litter basket waste used to sit on the curb for hours, providing a free, all-you-can-eat buffet for rats,” said Sanitation Commissioner Jessie Tisch. “We’ve talked about wanting to change this for years and now we’re announcing new funds to test our clean curbs containers for all five boroughs.”
Officials said Wednesday they planned to experiment with the bins in all five boroughs — with the next slated for Brooklyn by the summer.
The program is also set to get $1.3 million a year in funding.
