Starting this week, about 44,000 Dallas residents will be surveyed on their trash pick-up preferences: curb or alley.
Sanitation Director Cliff Gillespie told the City Council’s Quality of Life, Arts and Culture committee that the survey will be sent to residents living in areas with alleys 9 feet wide or less. The survey will also ask if they are willing to pay higher monthly rates to keep alley service. The city has tried twice over the past two years to phase out alley collection, but paused plans due to resident opposition.
“We do expect to evaluate all potential operational models, including the possibility of private providers, if that could help sustain safe and relatable service,” Gillespie said during the meeting.
The survey will be mailed to residents starting this week and will also be available online and by phone. It will be offered in English and Spanish, with responses accepted through mid-January, Gillespie told The Dallas Morning News after the meeting.
Political Points
City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert had initially announced the survey would go out in October. Gillespie explained that the questions were recently revised to improve clarity. Survey results and recommendations will be presented to the City Council in January.
The city had planned to end alley service for about 26,000 households starting in January 2026, citing worker safety risks, property damage and high costs. The phaseout would have affected homes with alleys narrower than nine feet, dead-end alleys longer than 200 feet, and unpaved alleys, especially in areas where most homes have front driveways.
Dallas currently serves over 261,000 sanitation customers, with about 95,000, roughly 36%, using alley collection, mostly in northeast, northwest, and Far North Dallas.
A September memo from Tolbert to the mayor and City Council said continuing alley service for the 26,000 affected households could cost between $69.87 and $80.81 per month, up from the current $39.73 for all sanitation customers.
A memo from Assistant City Manager Alina Ciocan on Monday said if survey results don’t show “significant interest” in alternative service models, the city will move forward with the phaseout plan. Council member Bill Roth criticized this approach, saying it could be seen as dismissive of resident concerns.
“I’m cautioning our group to really pay attention to the needs and sentiments of the neighborhood,” Roth said. “This isn’t going away easily.”
Gillespie reassured Roth that the survey results would guide decisions and that the city aims to tailor solutions to different areas.
Council member Laura Cadena raised concerns about potential rate increases for residents who don’t currently have alley service, especially in her West Dallas district, where most trash is collected from the curb. Gillespie acknowledged the concern and said it would be considered as the process moves forward.