Waukesha, WI Trash & Recycling: Bin Placement Rules (2026)

Section 13.055(5)(b), Cart Placement, governs properties on Automated Service. Carts must be placed adjacent to a public street as designated by the Department of Public Works for that specific property, never adjacent to a private road, and positioned as close to the curb as possible. Crucially, the Cart must face the street with nothing obstructing the space between the Cart and the street, so the truck's automated arm can lift and empty it without the driver getting out to reposition it, and it cannot sit beneath low-clearance obstructions that would block the arm.

Carts must stay within the Eligible Property's own street frontage, never placed in front of a neighboring property, and must be spaced at least 3 feet laterally from other Carts or objects so the automated arm has clearance to operate. Notably, subsection (5)(b) also states that collection workers are not required to move Carts out from behind or away from parked vehicles to complete a pickup, so a Cart blocked by a car in the street may simply be skipped that week.

Manual Service properties, covered instead by subsection (6)(c), follow a parallel but separate placement rule: Containers go adjacent to a public street or alley as the Department designates, never on a private road or driveway, and must be pulled back from the alley edge and removed entirely on non-collection days.