Canterbury-Bankstown councillors fed up as worst suburbs for dumped shopping trolleys revealed

New tech has revealed the southwest Sydney suburbs where people are dumping up to 40 trolleys every day, as the area’s councillors vent their frustration over the “eyesores”.

New data has revealed the suburbs where people are dumping up to 40 trolleys every day.

A southwest Sydney council has named and shamed the suburbs with the highest number of abandoned shopping trolleys amid rising fury over the “eyesores”.

Canterbury-Bankstown Council is the first local government body to trial a new detection system that uses artificial intelligence — in the form of powered cameras hitched to street sweepers — to identify lost trolleys.

Since its launch in June last year, the system has detected up to 40 trolleys a day – or about 20,000 to date – with Bankstown, Lakemba, Punchbowl and Campsie the worst affected areas.

Council mayor Bilal El-Hayek said abandoned shopping trolleys were the “scourge” of the city and vowed to hold retailers accountable.

“The major (retail) chains are making billions of dollars in profits each year, yet they’ve put the handbrake on investing in more smart trolleys that they can track or immobilise trolleys when leaving the stores’ boundaries,” Cr El-Hayek said.

Artificial intelligence cameras, mounted to street sweepers, have identified abandoned shopping trolley hotspots within the Canterbury-Bankstown Council area. Picture: Supplied

“I’ve had enough and I’m exploring every possibility to seize dumped trolleys and recycle them.”

A council report has identified more than 30 retailers whose trolleys were being taken and abandoned across the city.

Artificial intelligence cameras, mounted to street sweepers, are being used to detect abandoned shopping trolleys. Picture: Supplied

Cr El-Hayek said the artificial intelligence technology was revolutionising the way council dealt with this issue, but it needed supermarket chains and the state government to focus on implementing real solutions.

“I’ve also written to the minister responsible to impose heavier fines and make it easier for councils to fine lax supermarkets.”

Bankstown councillor George Zakhia urged retail giants to comply with the council’s requests “peacefully”.

“The last thing we would want to do is impose fines,” Cr Zakhia said.

“However, we need to apply pressure on major supermarkets in the city.

“Supermarkets already have the technology to make sure (customers) cannot take trolleys.”

Electronic trolley locking systems have been available for more than a decade, with some Queensland cities among the first in Australia to launch them in 2015.

However, the rollout of geofenced trolleys has been relatively slow, with Coles only beginning to launch them in select Melbourne stores last year to much consumer frustration.

Bankstown councillor Khal Asfour agreed the onus was on retailers, not the council, to “fix” the problem.

Abandoned shopping trolleys on Meredith St, Bankstown, in late October. Picture: Canterbury Bankstown Express

“It’s a simple solution,” Cr Asfour said.

“Whether it’s Coles, Woolworths (or) Kmart, they are the ones who own the property so it should be their responsibility to fix this,” he said.

“But I also think it’s time the state government legislate to make it mandatory for all retailers to upgrade to the new technology.”

Cr Asfour said abandoned trolleys were also harming the city’s reputation.

“It’s not just about the cost to council either,” he said.

“They’re unsightly, they’re eyesores and it sends the wrong message about the cleanliness of our area.

“It’s a shame. It seems it’s cheaper for retailers to lose trolleys than it is to simply replace them.”