Will it be another white elephant?

bp
Refuse collectionsRefuse collections
Refuse collections

Sheffield 8

It now seems that Sheffield City Council are regretting signing up to a 25-year contract with Veolia for refuse disposal.

They are trying to negotiate a new deal, which would reduce the frequency of glass/plastic collection by more than half (12 collections per year compared to 26 currently), and the same for paper/card.

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There is also the Streets Ahead contract with Amey which was signed for a similar 25-year period.

Why do the council insist on tying themselves to these profit-orientated companies for such long periods?

And now we read that the council want to sign a 10 year contract for a company to provide a “free” wi-fi service throughout the city centre.

While this is obviously shorter than the above contracts, technological changes in wi-fi/internet access over the 10-year period will surely mean that a “good” service in the year 2027 bears no relation to anything which is currently available or even being considered for development, (certainly greater than any changes which might occur in the fields of rubbish collection or road mending!)

I wonder whether anyone at the council will consider this when drawing up the contract, or will they be left with another white elephant?