ADAMS TWP. — Garbage collection in Adams Township is now limited to between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m., Monday through Saturday, following a unanimous supervisors vote Oct. 12 and repeated resident complaints about predawn pickups.
Asked why the township selected those hours rather than the 7 a.m.–7 p.m. window requested by one correspondent, Tylka said the hours were similar to those used by peer municipalities.
“We don’t want to be more restrictive than needed,” he said.
Records obtained by The 228 Times through a Right-to-Know request document complaints about early morning collection and township efforts to address them.
An Adams Ridge resident reported in a March 9 complaint that Waste Management had been collecting trash loudly between 3:30 and 4:30 a.m. on Mondays for at least a month, disturbing the resident’s family and neighbors.
The township redacted the resident’s name and identifying information from the released records.
Township correspondence shows concerns about early collection dating to December 2025. In an email that month, a resident reported that pickups had moved to a later time after Tylka contacted the company, but asked the township to establish collection hours to prevent future problems.
Further emails reported early pickups in March 2026, including complaints about banging garbage containers and truck backup alarms.
An Adams Ridge correspondent reported in August that collection times had improved from before 4 a.m. to between 6 and 7 a.m. In September, however, the correspondent reported a pickup across the street at 3:42 a.m.
On Sept. 10, Tylka told correspondents he had been authorized to have the township solicitor examine collection-hour restrictions and that the board chairman supported the effort. Five days later, he said the amendment should be ready for adoption at the Oct. 12 meeting.
Doug Vogel, vice president of Vogel Disposal Service, said the restriction would not affect the company’s residential operations because its trucks do not collect that early in residential areas.
Other residents raised questions about how collection schedules could interact with morning traffic.
Frank Klukaszewski said he sometimes hears garbage trucks in the morning but is already awake and does not consider it a major issue. He questioned whether later pickups could add trucks to streets already busy with commuters, school buses and pedestrians.
“I guess I need more information to make a better assessment,” Klukaszewski said.
Mitchel Fitzsimmons said he had not been awakened by early trash collection but was concerned about possible effects on his commute.
“Even though I only go into Warrendale it can take me over 30 minutes depending on the traffic and day,” Fitzsimmons said.
The previous collection provision required authorized haulers to establish regular schedules and notify the township of collection days and times, but did not specify permitted collection hours.
The signed amendment, Ordinance 2026-195, retains those scheduling requirements. It also retains the requirement that collectors notify customers and the township when collection will occur if a regular collection day falls on a holiday.
The amendment does not specify exceptions to the collection-hour restriction for holidays, weather delays or commercial collection. Tylka’s response did not address those questions or whether all authorized haulers had been notified and would change their schedules.
The remainder of the township’s waste management and recycling ordinance remains in effect. Residents may continue to select an authorized collection service of their choice.