Here's why your leaf bags still haven't been collected

Frustration continues to grow for Barrie residents, with the city still several weeks behind in collecting yard waste.

City officials attribute the delays to higher-than-average seasonal temperatures and staffing shortages.

The company contracted out by the city to do the collection is caught in the middle of a DZ driver's licence shortage, leaving leaf bags piled up on driveways across the city.

"This is a nationwide shortage they are struggling with it, but we're trying to do our best to work our way through it," says Dave Friary from the City of Barrie.

To speed up the process, the city is taking crews from other departments and using city-owned trucks to help collect as many bags as possible.

However, with recent snowfall, the new concern is picking up the bags without ripping or damaging them and creating a mess.

"We get around 30 bags in our dump trailer and basically shovel them out of the snow if the snow is not that bad. Probably like every 20 minutes, we’re heading to the landfill, so it doesn’t take much to fill this up," says City of Barrie Worker Clayton Ferrier.

Homeowners are asked to leave their bags at the edge of the road to help crews catch up with the collection.

The city says garbage and recycling pick-up has not been affected and will remain a priority.