Suffolk County Council has announced it will use the installation of Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras alongside an automatic entry system at its recycling centres, including the Felixstowe site in Carr Road, to improve customer experience and plan for future demand.

Suffolk has long held ambitions to Create the Greenest County and the Suffolk 2020 fund, which is a programme of work all about investing in community projects, aims to support the council's climate emergency declaration and improve Suffolk for all residents in years to come.

A booking system was introduced at Suffolk's recycling centres in May 2020 when sites reopened following closure at the start of the first Covid-19 lockdown and saw 14,000 visits per week during the summer. This can rise up to 27,000 per week in normal times, without current social distancing rules.

The project announced today is part of the Suffolk 2020 programme and aims to improve the efficiency at the recycling centres by linking the online booking system with automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology and automated entry barriers.

Each of Suffolk County Council's 11 recycling centres had the ANPR technology installed as part of its contract with FCC, who manage and run the sites in Suffolk. The council is now looking to use the technology to further improve the current booking system for residents wishing to visit the centres and make the most of the technological opportunities.

The cameras give an accurate count of vehicle numbers and also record how much time each vehicle is on site. This will allow Suffolk County Council to maximise site availability and to develop new and existing sites to better meet the needs of the increasing population of Suffolk.

Data from the system could also assist in identifying rogue traders fraudulently using the free household waste service to dispose of trade waste. The system also has the facility to link to the DVLA database and identify the type of vehicle and registered keeper details if necessary.

The council will also be working on upgrades to the booking system software to improve the customer experience by making it quicker and easier to make and amend bookings.

Councillor Paul West, Cabinet Member for Waste Services, said: "We have already seen how well the 'book a slot' system has been working in Suffolk, but we know we can make improvements to make the experience for people visiting the sites even quicker and easier.

"By linking the ANPR cameras with the booking system we can speed up the process for customers getting in and out of their recycling centre. The easier we make it for everyone to recycle, the better the outcome for our environment and the people of Suffolk. This approach will help us reduce potential queues at sites, plan site visits and continue to improve the customer experience for everybody using Suffolk's recycling centres."

FCC's Operations Director Steve Longdon, said: "What has become very apparent since April 2020 is just how much the public value recycling centres and indeed the law was changed during the early stages of the Covid pandemic to cement their place as an essential service. So we are pleased to see this investment in technology, which we are sure will even further improve the use experience at each of the 11 recycling centres in Suffolk and deliver the expected benefits to the service that we are proud to provide."

People can book their visit to their local recycling centre up to one week in advance. While on site, visitors are asked to maintain social distancing and it is advised that sensible footwear, gloves and face coverings are worn.

[L]https://suffolkrecycling.org.uk/where-to-recycle/recycling-centres/suffolk-recycling-centres-booking-page[L+]Book here for Felixstowe recycling centre