Madrid is set to change the image of its street furniture once again with the arrival of 2,000 giant, high-capacity litter bins in green areas from May onwards, as part of the new municipal litter bin maintenance contract. The City Council will invest €38.9 million over five years to maintain and clean the 89,000 existing Cibeles model trash cans and add 1,300 “smart” solar-powered compacting trash cans , which will remotely report their fill level. The new green trash cans will measure 1.3 meters, have a capacity of 156 liters (compared to the 50 liters of the current ones in parks), a double accessible opening, an ashtray, a tactile relief for blind people, and, in 30% of cases, a dispenser for dog waste bags.
This is not the first time that Madrid has carried out a massive renewal of its litter bins: in 2009, it launched the Cibeles model, which it has exclusive ownership of for 25 years, and in 2021 it replaced 23,000 litter bins in parks with more resistant and accessible models. That 2009 contract exceeded €59 million, and the current one is again a major budgetary effort to update an element as everyday as it is decisive in urban cleanliness.
Solar compactors: Madrid’s new futuristic trash cans
Editorial credit: Madrid City Council
Behind this operation there is also a paradigm shift in light waste management: solar compactors will be concentrated in high-traffic areas, with height limits so as not to obstruct traffic visibility, data connections for incidents, and anti-vandalism systems. In addition, the contract provides for an increase from 600 to 830 of the bag holders that are hung from streetlights at large events, maintaining the service of more than 100 million bags per year in dog waste dispensers, and renewing the entire fleet of vehicles linked to the service, which will become zero-emission.
The City Council will accompany the renewal with information campaigns on the use of litter bins, both on banners and on the furniture itself, and with educators on the street who will support the actions with games, QR codes, and extra distribution of up to 26 million dog bags.