With Bermuda’s outdated trash collection routes in dire need of a makeover, GPS systems are to be installed in trucks within a matter of weeks for data gathering to develop a new system.

Craig Cannonier, the Minister of Public Works, acknowledged public impatience with the frequent pileup of uncollected waste, an ongoing problems that has dogged his ministry since his appointment in January.

“What we need to do is set this in context and bear in mind that we are dealing with a decades-old system that has not been updated,” Mr Cannonier said.

“In many instances the collection is manual. The zones in which we pick up trash have been around since most of us were children.”

There are 12 collection zones, and at any time there should be an equal number of collection trucks to deal with garbage.

Mechanical problems have hampered that optimum number. At one point, the minister said the operating fleet of trucks dropped down to an unprecedented five.

With “more traffic, more houses, more small roads”, Mr Cannonier described it as “imperative” that a new collection procedure be adopted.

He reported a breakthrough in negotiations with unions, which have now agreed to the use of open-backed trucks to help out when the number of trucks slips below 11.

Unions had also proven amenable to the outsourcing of maintenance repairs, since facilities at the Government Quarry could not accommodate all the extra work.

Mr Cannonier said that while some would see the introduction of GPS as a move to keep watch over staff, its purposes were strictly for data collection.

“It is not retributive; this is about how we can become more effective,” he said. “We need to look at things we can do now. We are putting our guys more and more at risk — not just in terms of safety, but their health as well.”

In one “particularly problematic” zone, the Government’s new trucks have difficulty manoeuvring.

“If you go over a hump, the middle of the truck gets stuck,” Mr Cannonier said. “I could say that we should not have bought them. That’s not what I’m saying. We didn’t collect enough data to give us an informed decision on ordering these kinds of trucks.”

Some areas where accessibility is too difficult may end up having to bring trash out to the main road.

Waste collection may also shift over to using bins instead of loose bags, he said, for health and safety reasons.

Workers have been subjected to dangerous conditions: in one case, a cardboard box turned out to be filled with used syringes.

Trash collectors have found faecal matter left out in bags. In 2013, a trash collector needed medical treatment after a container of muriatic acid ruptured while being compacted.

“We could need to look at vehicles or trucks more suited to our environmental conditions,” Mr Cannonier told The Royal Gazette.

The timing of collections could be altered depending on what traffic conditions drivers encounter at certain times.

Another option is finding locations for transfer stations, so trucks that reach their limits can drop off their loads more efficiently and return to collection quickly.

Permanent Secretary Marva-Jean O’Brien said the idea had been considered before, but “we are now actively moving toward it”.

Asked if the Government might eventually contemplate European-style “bin charges” for collection, Mr Cannonier said: “Nothing’s off the table. We are not saying that we are going to charge people, but we need to look at what those options are. Obviously, before any decision would be made, we would consult the public.”

The minister said he hoped for GPS to be installed on trucks within two weeks. After six months of collections, he said, “we will have good data on our side, to start with the changes that we need to make”.

“This is not a political issue. Trash does not care whether you’re east or west. It’s there and it needs to be picked up.”

In the meantime, extra hours will be added at the Tynes Bay facility, which will open an hour earlier, at 8am, and stay open later, until 7pm, to enable the public to dispose of refuse more easily.