The safe, phased re-opening of the council’s community recycling centres (CRCs) is continuing, with the Woolston site now open to the public.
Following the re-opening of Gatewarth CRC on 11 May, Woolston CRC has re-opened today (Tuesday 19 May).
The site will be open seven days a week, with traffic management plans have been put in place, via Blue Arrow, to prevent and manage any potential impact and delays onto Manchester Road. These arrangements will be reviewed and potentially extended, based upon activity levels.
The opening times at Woolston and Gatewarth CRCs are as follows:
• Woolston: 10am – 6pm
• Gatewarth: 8am – 6pm
The re-opening of Woolston and Gatewarth recycling centres means over two-thirds of Warrington’s normal CRC capacity is now operational. The council will be reviewing re-opening arrangements for the smaller Stockton Heath site in the near future.
Residents are urged only to travel to the CRCs if any household waste cannot be safely stored at home. Additional measures are in place at both sites to protect residents and staff:
• Access is permitted for cars only. No vans, vehicle trailers, commercial vehicles or pedestrians will be allowed in
• Only one person is permitted per car, unless you are a blue badge holder
• Due to social distancing restrictions, our staff will not be able to help with unloading or lifting items, so only take to the tip what you can safely dispose of yourself
• We will be operating a one-in, one-out system to ensure people can dispose of their waste safely, so expect lengthy queues
• To help prevent people travelling to the CRC from outside Warrington, residents will be asked for evidence of their address, and so need to take a recent utility bill, council tax bill or proof of address to display in their car windscreen
• Residents are reminded to observe the social distancing rules when on site, so please be considerate and patient with one another
• Residents who are abusive, intimidating or clearly flout the national guidance will have access to the CRC removed
• There will be comprehensive traffic management in place on site. Lengthy queues are expected and residents may be asked to leave and return later.
Warrington Borough Council Leader, Cllr Russ Bowden said: “We’ve been working hard to re-open our recycling centres in as safe a manner as possible, and I’m pleased that our Woolston site is now once more open to the public.
“Since we re-opened Gatewarth CRC, we have seen a daily increase in visitors, but things have run smoothly thanks to robust traffic management and staffing levels, along with the responsible behaviour of local people.
“I would urge visitors to our Woolston site to support us in the same way, by only coming if you have an essential need, by following the advice and by being patient and respectful of others.”
For the latest updates on Warrington response to the coronavirus pandemic, visit warrington.gov.uk/coronavirus
