There are an awful lot of lazy and couldn't-care-less people around. Some of them are perfectly happy to take a store's shopping trolley off the premises (which they should not do: it is effectively a kind of theft) and dump it at a place of their convenience (which they definitely should not do).This happens around my home area quite a lot, as we have the Horsted Retail Park nearby, with stores such as Currys, Homebase, PC World and Toys'R'Us. We also have an Asda store a short distance up the road from there.
For almost all the time I have lived here (i.e. starting long before I was elected to Medway Council) I have operated what I like to call John's Trolley Rescue Service as a public service. If I find a dumped trolley (typically on the pavement or the fields adjacent to this estate) I take it back. If I can't go to its store of origin straight away I park it outside my house (in a location that is near-enough invisible from the road and footpath) until I can do so.
The latter approach applies mainly to Asda trollies: it is a bit of a difficult trek with these things, as they tend to want to go into the main road(!) I therefore wait until I am going up there shopping; though if that is going to be more than a few days I'll generally ring them up and ask them to collect their property from my house. I worked there some years ago, so know the way they work, and they are happy to do this. They are also aware that I operate this retrieval service.
Later today, I am heading up that way with two such trollies that I collected within a couple of days of each other, both toward the end of last week. That's around a thousand Pounds-worth of their property I am returning to them.
I suppose it's just as well it isn't Strood, where trollies are frequently dumped in the river, at what has become known as "Shopping Trolley Graveyard". My excellent colleague in Strood North ward, Councillor Jane Etheridge, has been dealing with that particular situation in recent years (since being elected to represent that ward) and has been amazed at just how many were fished out of the water.
Although, when I worked at Asda, rounding-up the trollies from around the car park was one of my favourite jobs (and I was very good at it) there really is no excuse for making off with someone else's property and then just leaving it lying around. One of the two I rescued last week didn't even have its brake on, and was left right next to the "inner" Shirley Avenue roundabout. A gust of wind could have blown it into the road, just as a vehicle was approaching, and caused an accident or at least some damage.
Perhaps, just like the smaller trolleys at Asda (for example), these too need to have a deposit paid on them before they can be taken from their place of storage. That would encourage users to take them back, so they can retrieve their money. I might suggest this to the store managers...
4 comments:
£1,000 for TWO shopping trolleys? Let's do the maths: Tesco probably has a total of 400,000 trolleys, of which 10% we're told are lost or stolen every year, plus another 10% must be replaced as they're worn out. That's 80,000 trolleys at £500 each - a total of £40 million - they have to invest each year just to keep us shopping. At that price I'm surprised they don't employ armed guards to ensure the trolleys never leave the premises!
At little more than half the cost of Tata's new 'people's car' I'm also surprised the trolleys don't come with electric motors, a steering wheel, brakes and ride-on seats!
Thanks for the response, "anonymous".
Just for information: I worked at Asda for a few years, including as a trolley porter (as part of my Night Greeter duties) and that was the cost of them that I was told independently by two Managers.
I have no reason to doubt what they said, but have no way to back it up personally.
I'm surprised they don't have the deposit thing on them already, to be honest.
The trollies in Rainham Shopping Sentre have, and I don't remember seeing all that many lying around (maybe I've got used to them).
But yes, it doesn't look good in the river.
Rob
To an extent I tend to agree; but the standard trolleys are replaced fairly often anyway, so I suppose the possible loss of custom (when competitors aren't doing this -- as it is known to have an impact) probably offsets the potential loss.
At Asda the trolley porters would go out and collect trolleys when notified where they are -- something I have done myself when working there. Since leaving, I have 'phoned in the location of them (after first making sure they are safe) when I have encountered one that was too far from my home to bring back here.
I found one such on the corner of Beresford Avenue in Rochester a year or so ago, for example. I re-positioned it in a safer position, put the brake on, and rang the store to let them know.
It's all part of the service!
Post a Comment