More changes to Rotherham's bins with £52,000 trial

Council bosses will also spend £52,000 trialing 15 smart bins, which use solar power to crush rubbish inside and so need emptying less often.

And £300,000 will be spent on two extra path-sweeper vehicles to bring Rotherham nearer to the standard of neighbouring towns.

An audit found that about 15 per cent of the borough’s 1,880 public litter bins were damaged and needed replacing.

Some 160 of these will be removed as a priority at a cost of £56,000, Rotherham Borough Council said.

The solar bins, which need emptying about 80 per cent less often, can tell council officers when they are full.

Cllr Sarah Allen, Rotherham Council’s cabinet member for cleaner, greener communities, said: “Having a clean, safe and green environment to live in is one of the key things residents tell us is important to them.

“That is why we committed funds from our budget to pay for more street cleaning and better bins.”