New York City Unveils New Trash Can ‘Revolution,’ Mercilessly Mocked Online

As New York City Mayor Eric Adams unveiled a new wheelie trash can in a press conference on Monday, the internet wasted no time mocking the announcement.

During the event, Adams and New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) Commissioner Jessica Tisch set out Gracie Mansion’s trash in the first-ever official NYC bin, symbolizing the city’s move to eliminate ubiquitous black trash bags from its streets.

The new bins, equipped with wheels and a secure latching lid, have been touted as affordable, durable and a key part of the city’s “trash revolution.”

But as Adams wheeled out the bin to the sound of Alicia Keys’ ‘Empire State of Mind,’ social media users quickly took to their platforms to mock the initiative—pointing out that the bins have been used in other places for some time.

“Adorable how NYC has finally come around to trash cans,” tweeted Julie Bykowicz (@bykowicz).

The New York Fellas (@newyorkfellas) wrote: “NYC is acting like they just cured cancer by asking people to put trash in trash cans.”

User directional transsexual (@north0fnorth) added: “Playing ‘Empire State of Mind’ while wheeling out the kind of trash bin that every other major U.S. city has had forever and calling it a revolution is taking me out.”

“It’s 2024 and NYC is just discovering trash cans?” wrote a stunned Ross Berry (@Ross_Berry).

Newsweek reached out to the City of New York for comment via email.

The introduction of the new NYC bins is a significant step in the city’s ongoing effort to improve public sanitation and reduce pest problems. The aim is that the new trash cans will help contain more than 70 percent of the city’s 14 billion pounds of trash annually, leaving sidewalks clearer.

An essential aspect of the new trash cans is their ability to keep rats and other pests at bay. The secure latching lids prevent rodents from accessing the trash, particularly crucial as the city has recently reported record-breaking rat sightings, with an estimated 3 million rodents in the city in 2023.

In April 2023, Adams appointed the city’s first “rat czar,” Kathleen Corradi, with a $3.5 million budget behind her to reduce the city’s rampant rat population. At the time, he described them as “public enemy number one.”

In response to the new trash cans, Corradi said: “The NYC Bin adds another instrumental tool in New York City’s rat mitigation toolkit. With this next step in the Department of Sanitation’s ‘Trash Revolution,’ New York City continues its efforts to systematically deny rats a curbside buffet and get black bags off our streets.”