Chattanooga working to clear brush piles as 311 system gets an upgrade

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) – Many Chattanooga neighborhoods are still waiting for their brush piles to be picked up, but city leaders say help is on the way.

News 12 spoke with the Department of Public Works, who says they are making improvements to both their 311 system and their cleanup strategy to better serve residents.

Errol Williams, Public Relations Coordinator for Chattanooga, says while residents have noticed delays, the overall number of brush requests being handled hasn’t changed drastically.

“The number of brush requests that we actually pick up is really not off that much,” Williams said.

Across several neighborhoods, neighbors say piles of branches and yard debris have been sitting curbside for weeks.

Some residents say they’re starting to wonder when the city will finally come by.

One neighbor, who asked to remain unidentified, said the buildup has become a safety and traffic concern.

“This brush has been here around a month. Usually, they do a good job picking it up, but I don’t know what’s been going on,” the resident said. “It’s just been piling up and piling up. Everyone on this street has to take their trash to the bottom of the hill, and the branches get in the way of traffic and our trash cans.”

Public Works says they hear those concerns and are actively working on a solution.

Williams says part of that plan includes a new feature that will give residents more information about pickup schedules.

“We are sharing this information with our citizens. Included in that, we’re giving directions on what they can do,” Williams explained. “We want to include a map where citizens can go online and see exactly when their pickup date is going to be so that we can help alleviate the problem.”

However, not all residents believe that’s enough.

The same neighbor pointed out that not everyone has access to the internet or smartphones.

“That would be a good idea, but a lot of people don’t have access to the internet or their phones to even check that,” they said. “I think it’d be better if they came by on Fridays, saw what needed to be picked up, and took care of it. But if we do have to call them, that’s fine, as long as they pick it up in a timely manner.”

Public Works says more updates are coming soon to the city’s 311 system to make it faster, more efficient, and better equipped to track cleanup locations across Chattanooga.