HOUSTON – City leaders say they are working long hours to fix the recycling delays, but many Houstonians say the trucks still have not arrived. Across the city, people continue to report missed service and weeks-long wait times, despite reassurances from Mayor John Whitmire and the Solid Waste Department.
We asked Houstonians to tell us what’s happening in their neighborhoods, and dozens responded with stories of missed pickups, delayed service, and growing frustration.
Laura in the 77031 ZIP code said recycling delays have become so common in her neighborhood this year that it’s now rare for trucks to arrive on the scheduled day. “It would be great to see this improve,” she added.
Heather, who lives in 77009, said her last pickup was two weeks ago, but it arrived a full month late. She’s still waiting for her next scheduled pickup, now five days overdue.
Cynthia in 77022 reported that her recycling bin has been sitting on the curb for over a week. “We rarely get recycling picked up on the right day,” she said. “My scheduled day was last Tuesday.”
Tim, a resident in Highland Village (77027), shared that there has been no recycling pickup in his neighborhood for three weeks.
Janie in 77078, Johnny in 77076, and Ronnie in 77020 all said their bins had been left out for over a month with no service. “Mine’s been sitting outside for almost a month,” added Yesenia, who didn’t provide a ZIP but echoed the same experience.
Blanca in 77088 said her street has seen recycling picked up a day late, which she can tolerate, but added, “If our street is missed, I just call 311 and they come within a day or two.”
Chuck in 77057 and Sheri in 77006 confirmed their neighborhoods were also experiencing delays. “Yes!!” Sheri wrote, emphasizing her frustration.
Cyril said the city’s waste department is severely understaffed and blamed a lack of available drivers for the ongoing issues. “The streets of Houston are in deplorable condition and the mayor is MIA,” he wrote.
Richard expressed deeper concerns, saying Houston’s recycling system has seen “major failures” over the past six years, including delays, broken promises, and mismanagement. He added that despite launching an advanced recycling program in 2022, much of the collected plastic remains unprocessed or stored in facilities that failed inspections.
Shirley summed up what many seem to feel: “I’ll just start throwing everything away, recycling or not. I’m tired of the delays and neglect by the city.”v
ZIP codes where residents reported recycling pickup delays:
- 77009
- 77013
- 77020
- 77022
- 77023
- 77027
- 77031
- 77033
- 77035
- 77043
- 77057
- 77063
- 77076
- 77078
- 77087
- 77088
- 77093
- 77336
Mayor John Whitmire and the City of Houston Solid Waste Department have assured residents that work is being done to address the concerns, but some delays are still persisting.
Interim Solid Waste Director Larius Hassen detailed a long list of challenges during a Houston City Council meeting, citing aging equipment, worker shortages, rodents damaging trucks and raw sewage backing up in facilities.
“It’s been a trying 90 days,” Hassen said. “I was told by a previous member that we could never catch up on recycling. It’s going to be five to eight days behind, and trash is two to three days behind. We’re working 12 to 14 hours, seven days a week.”
Both Hassen and Whitmire said these problems started before their tenure and pledged to make changes.
“This has been going on for six years,” Hassen told council. “This is a problem that Mayor Whitmire inherited, and I inherited.”
“It’s been almost a month,” said Mark Capper, a Spring Branch homeowner. “We had a graduation party, stocked up on drinks, paper plates, and napkins. When the city didn’t pick up our recycling, the bin overflowed and we had to start piling things in the garage.”
In response to the issues, the City of Houston Solid Waste Department cited the fact that 46 trucks in the city’s aging fleet are currently inoperable. A purchase of 34 new trucks has been approved, but officials say it could take six to eight months before those vehicles are operational.
KPRC 2 wants to hear if you have been dealing with missing or delayed recycling pickups. Leave us your experience and zip code in the comments so we know what part of Houston you are experiencing issues in.