Supermarket giant Asda has confirmed it will introduce a lock system for its trolleys in Sutton-in-Ashfield after complaints from residents and the local council. Last December, Ashfield District Council refused to return a number of the supermarket's dumped trolleys until "serious" action was taken.
The council said trolleys from the superstore in Priestsic Road were being found dumped "every day" and held them at its environment depot. This created a stand-off between the authority and Asda, which has now been resolved after the introduction of improved technology.
Locking mechanisms mean trolleys cannot leave the store's premises, and Asda said it had arranged a collection service. “People said we were ‘off our trolley’ taking on a huge conglomerate like Asda," said David Hennigan, councillor for Sutton Central and New Cross. "I’d like to thank the team at the EG Group, who own Asda for listening to our concerns and finally taking action.
Read more: Ashfield District Council in stand-off with ASDA over trolleys being dumped in Sutton-in-Ashfield
"Parts of our town resembled the set of iconic TV quiz Supermarket Sweep. We have tested this out for ourselves and it works. It just goes to show that by listening to resident’s concerns and taking strong action delivers results for our community.”
Cllr Jason Zadrozny, Leader of Ashfield District Council, added: “By keeping the trolleys we collected, we forced Asda to act. Residents were quite rightly angry that shopping trolleys were being dumped around Sutton. It was a daily occurrence. Taking on a huge company like Asda and winning is no mean feat – but Sutton will be a much better environment as a result.”
A spokesperson for Asda said: "After we were contacted by councillors about this issue in December last year we assured them that we would work to help minimize the chance of our trolleys being taken away from our store. As well as working with Collex to offer a collection service for any trollies which go walkabouts we’ve also ensured our trolley lock system is functioning as it should be.
"Residents who see an abandoned trolley can directly report it using the Collex app, so we can arrange for them to be collected and put them to better use.’’
