More than 500 'islands' of new rubbish bins for selective collection have been installed in all (pre)metro stations in Brussels, allowing the city's commuters to dispose of their waste easily.
In total, Brussels public transport operator STIB and Brussels Mobility have installed 552 sorting islands across the 69 stations, each consisting of three rubbish bags: for paper and cardboard (yellow), for plastic and metal containers (blue), and for residual waste (white).
While STIB already introduced waste separation in its stations in the early 2000s, it had to replace those with a transparent bag for safety reasons after the 2016 terror attacks: it was not possible to see what had been thrown in, which posed a security risk.
New rubbish bins. Credit: STIB
"The new model, which was also used in the Paris metro network, meets this safety requirement and at the same time makes selective collection possible," STIB said in a press release. The updated system was first tested in De Brouckère metro station last year and has now been installed in all (pre)metro stations in the Capital Region.
Additionally, the presence of rubbish bins in the stations – which are often dirty as people leave their rubbish in corners or behind the entrance gates – contributes to a cleaner and more pleasant environment.
The stations are cleaned and the bins are emptied seven days a week, 365 days a year – with the most frequently used ones even emptied several times a day.
