Waste Piles Up at Taman Sari as Rubbish Collection Workers Claim Overtime and Blame from Residents
JAKARTA — Rubbish collection workers at the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (TPS3R) Hanura waste processing facility on Jalan Hanura Ketapang, Krukut, Taman Sari, West Jakarta, have complained of waste piling up approximately one metre high and overflowing onto the roadway, as observed on Saturday, 14 March 2026.
Based on observations, rubbish accumulation in front of TPS3R Hanura stretched approximately 50 metres across Kali Krukut Bridge. Some waste even encroached onto the roadway, forcing vehicles from both directions to take turns passing through.
One rubbish collection worker, Ajiz (28), stated that staff are frequently blamed by residents for allegedly failing to organise waste properly. According to Ajiz, residents believed waste accumulation should not occur since the TPS3R facility is equipped with waste processing machinery.
However, he explained that the machinery has not yet operated optimally to process all incoming waste. “Residents think the rubbish collection workers have it easy since there are machines here, but the equipment is left unused. When the machine does operate, it can only process three carts of rubbish before breaking down,” he said.
In addition to equipment limitations, waste accumulation has been triggered by reduced waste transport activities to the Integrated Waste Processing Site (TPST) Bantargebang, which is currently experiencing a landslide. Whereas three trucks normally collect waste from TPS3R Hanura daily, only one truck is now operating.
This situation means incoming waste volume exceeds transported volume, causing continuous accumulation. Consequently, rubbish collection workers must work longer hours than usual. Ajiz explained that workers’ duties involve not only collecting waste from residents’ homes but also loading it into collection trucks. If collection trucks have not yet arrived at the TPS3R, workers must wait until transport is completed before finishing their shift.
The workers hope conditions at Bantargebang return to normal soon so that waste transport operations can run smoothly and waste accumulation at TPS3R Hanura does not continue.