REDI Recycles June 2, 2020 (photo courtesy Bob Schneider)

By Chantal Wagner

skip the line

REDI Recycle offers new household beverage pickup service

Jun 2, 2020 | 3:19 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – With months of sticking around home, you may have a collection of bottles piled up.

And now you won’t have to wait in line with REDI Recycling Centre and Bottle Depot’s new bottle pickup service for residents.

Customers are able to leave the bagged containers out in a pre-arranged location on the pickup date.

REDI Enterprises Operations Manager Josh Hudson says the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need for services where customers can interact with businesses hands-free, contact-free, and in a convenient way.

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He says now is a great time to roll out the residential beverage container pickup service.

It began on Monday, June 1 with REDI running a test run in the middle of May.

Hudson says they’re able to run two trucks all day long.

“We believe we can handle potentially 20 or more pickups a day. It depends on the size of the orders and whatnot. But we plan on continuing it well past when the pandemic is over and continuing as a service that people can take advantage of so that they don’t have to stand in line if they don’t want to. Especially if they have a really big order.”

Cheques or cash can then be picked up at REDI.

They are also working on a phone app and e-transfer option to make the service even more convenient.

Pickups can be arranged via email or phone call via the link information below.

There is a flat $5 fee for the pick-up service.

Hudson says the pandemic was part of the reason to start the pick-up service. But it made sense anyway even if there are no health concerns out there.

He says the depot has been picking up now and May was a pretty typical month for the number of containers coming through the doors.

“Traffic really went down with the pandemic especially when people were very conscious about staying at home.”

Recycling services were declared essential by the Alberta government.

REDI recycling stayed open with modified hours and health protocols in place like physical distancing, and plexiglass shields at all the windows.