A wobble over trolleys

A move that would help end the plague of abandoned supermarket trolleys has been proposed at Municipal District level by Cllr Bill Collentine.

The Fianna Fáil man wants supermarkets to install the electronic trolley lock system used in some other areas of the country,

Cllr Collentine explained the system at the September meeting of the Municipal District of Mullingar Kinnegad as he proposed that the executive write to the larger supermarkets asking that they install it.

“I’ve been bringing this up for the last nine or 10 years on a constant basis,” Cllr Collentine said, although, he added, the problem is not as bad as it was: “There is some improvement that has happened over the last number of years.”

However, he continued, it is still the case that “a small number of shoppers” continue to take trolleys and fail to return them.

“Some of the trolleys end up in the canal and they can be in it for months or maybe even years.”

There are two methods that can be used to curb the problem he said, one being an electronic stop that prevents people from taking trolleys beyond the perimeter, and the second being a deposit scheme aimed at those who tend to use the trolleys to bring their shopping home.

He said some of the chains in Mullingar already use the trolley lock system in their stores at other locations.

“Why do we not put pressure on those stores to do the same system in Mullingar?” he asked. “I think we need to talk gently to them and encourage them to do this.

“They should be able to come on board and I think probably some of them would come on board to solve this problem once and for all.”

Director of services Deirdre Reilly responded that the executive could write to the larger supermarkets making this request.

Council official Pat Keating said he agreed with Cllr Collentine, and said the council is in contact regularly with supermarkets. In cases where the council becomes aware of any trolley abandoned, it notifies the supermarket. If they are not collected, fines can issue, but for the most part supermarkets have a system.

Cllr Collentine replied that for the last two years, that system has not been operating; “They don’t have anyone out collecting any trolleys at all.”