Stratford, CT Trash & Recycling: Collection Schedule (2026)

The schedule rule in Stratford is a delegation, not a printed calendar. Section 182-5(C) says collection from households served shall not begin before 7:00 a.m., and that collection schedules and methods of collection are determined by the Director of Public Works, who must give appropriate notification to citizens of the Town. The Town Code does not print a pickup weekday for any neighborhood, so the Public Works notice is the controlling schedule.

Residents have duties that tie to the schedule. The owner of each premises where solid waste is generated must provide sufficient receptacles to hold waste between collections (§ 182-5(A)), and containers must be at the curbline before 7:00 a.m. on collection days, with the evening before allowed in residential areas.

Recycling runs on its own track. Section 165-6 establishes a program for the mandatory separation of recyclables and says collection of segregated recyclables is made periodically under the supervision of the Director. Under § 165-9(C), the Director must prominently publish any new schedule or guidelines whenever there is a change in the materials to be collected, the methods of collection or the schedule for collections. Recyclables go in containers approved by the Director and are kept separate from garbage or rubbish (§ 165-9(A)), and a collector must refuse solid waste that contains items designated for mandatory recycling (§ 182-3(B)(2)).

Private haulers follow separate rules. Apartments, condominiums and businesses serviced by private collectors must have an area or container designated and labeled for recyclables (§ 165-9(D)), and every private collector needs a license from the Director of Health (§ 182-7). The Town Council adopted Chapter 182 on 11-9-1992 and amended its core sections by Ord. No. 19-01 on 3-11-2019.