Councillor questions whether Sheffield tip should be moved over traffic issues
“This has been a thorny issue for some time”
The issue is particularly prevalent at weekends and on bank holidays, causing delays to bus services.
Residents have been clamouring for an answer to the traffic issue outside Blackstock Road household waste recycling centre, which is caused as motorists attempt to turn into the tip.
“This has been a thorny issue for some time and is frequently raised by residents to us as local councillors and via Gleadless Valley TARA (tenants and residents association),” councillor Alexi Dimond told The Star.
“We have been trying to get Veolia to take some action to prevent the road becoming backed up at peak times which severely impacts residents' journeys to/from work, appointments etc, either by car or bus.
“I understand Veolia are going to provide real time information about queue times both at the HWRCs and on their website so people can make an informed decision about where and when to go, and hopefully this will make some difference.
“Apparently, during Covid there was a banned right turn into the HWRC and I think it would help if this were to be reinstated.”
A video of the problem shared by The Star received more than 200,000 views, with hundreds of people sharing their thoughts.
“This one on Blackstock Road and the one at Woodhouse are dangerous - both need the road layout sorting before there's a bad accident,” one person commented,
Another commenter said there “absolutely” needs to be changes, adding: “I’ve been saying this since 2020 - there's ample space to widen the road slightly on both sides and have a left turn only lane from the bus stop all the was to the top entrance.
“Possibly put a mini roundabout on Blackstock Road where Overend Road is to facilitate turning round to join the queue instead of turning right into the tip from other end.”
Others similarly suggested better utilising the surrounding space to alter road layouts, offering earlier turns for cars trying to enter the site.
However, Coun Dimond suggested that this might not be the best location for a site of this kind at all.
He added: “Ultimately, I don't think this was/is a good location for a HWRC, due to being sited in ancient woodland and on a vital road, but I believe it is currently the most well-used in Sheffield and the only one with level access to the recycling facilities.
“If Sheffield were to have a large, modern waste recycling centre - as other cities have - this would take much of the pressure off, or perhaps even allow for the Blackstock Road site to one day be closed and the land used for the benefit of the local community.”
A spokesperson for Veolia said: “We apologise for any frustration caused to residents who have experienced long queue times at Blackstock Household Waste Recycling Centre.
“We continue to work closely with Sheffield City Council to explore options to improve access for all residents, including publishing accurate live wait times at our busier sites.
“Members of the public are encouraged to visit Recycle4Shef on X or visit sheffield.veolia.co.uk/hwrc-busy-times, where we regularly share updates on all five HWRCs in Sheffield, before visiting one of the sites.”