ENHANCED kerbside collections were hugely successful during the first week of the new service, diverting tonnes of recyclable material away from landfill sites, council chiefs said today.

A total of 187.24 tonnes of glass, paper, plastic bottles and other recyclables were collected from kerbside bags and boxes last week by City of York Council, compared with 137.69 tonnes for the same period last year.

This was the first time refuse collection teams had been able to accept plastic bottles, after the council invested in new vehicles that crush them as they travel on their routes.

The service is available to the 60,000 households which receive garden waste collections as part of the alternate weekly waste pick-ups.

As part of the phased introduction of cardboard collections, 10,000 of these households were also able to leave cardboard out for collection for the first time.

In Dunnington, 77 per cent of households took the opportunity to put out cardboard for collection. Other areas will benefit from this additional services during the coming months.

Geoff Derham, the council's general waste manager, said: "York residents really seem to have embraced the enhanced kerbside recycling collections, which operate in conjunction with the garden waste collections, on the alternate week to the grey bin rubbish collections.

"We added plastic bottles and cardboard to the range of items that we collect in response to feedback that we were receiving from local people.

"This is already proving very successful, particularly because they are bulky items that take up a lot of space if they are left in the grey bins for rubbish that goes to landfill sites.

"The impact on the tonnage of recyclable materials collected has been instant. There is clearly demand for this service and we are confident that this will play a key part in helping the council to meet strict government-set recycling targets during the coming year."

Coun Andrew Waller, the council's environment chief, said: "I am very pleased that there has been such a dramatic increase in the tonnages that we are recycling.

"I would like to pay tribute to the dedication, and hard work, of recycling and refuse crews, who have ensured that the new system has run smoothly.

"The enthusiasm of residents to add plastic bottles has been demonstrated right around the city. We will build on this success to include more areas, and more materials in future months."

Any residents who want to check their collection dates can phone the York Pride Action Line on 01904 551551 or visit the council website at www.york.gov.uk/waste

Updated: 11:45 Friday, March 17, 2006