Delivery of the City of San Diego’s new gray trash bins has begun in Rancho Bernardo.
After a one-week delay, some residents in RB’s Westwood neighborhood had their black trash bins removed and gray bins delivered on Oct. 28. They are among the earliest households citywide to receive the new bins, a replacement effort that city officials said is expected to continue into next year for the more than 225,000 city households eligible for city-provided trash service.
In Rancho Bernardo, delivery of new bins to the 9,237 eligible RB properties is expected to continue through mid-December, according to a map on the city’s website, sandiego.gov/trash. Delivery dates stated on the website are tentative and city officials advise people to check back as their date nears in case it is rescheduled. An email with their delivery date is also sent to those who have created their online account.
The black trash bins used by the City of San Diego being removed in Rancho Bernardo’s Westwood neighborhood on Oct. 28. (Elizabeth Marie Himchak)
“We’re excited for customers to experience the benefit of these new containers — newer bins will be less prone to breakage, feature helpful recycling labels to make sorting easier, and come in updated colors to help drivers quickly identify which containers to service,” said Jeremy Baue, assistant director for Environmental Services. “We want residents to rest assured that old containers will be recycled, with the material made available to create new bins.
“Each new container also includes a scannable tag to help the city track performance and continually improve service, a key part of our commitment to serving customers better every day,” he said.
Residents have up to 30 days after receiving their new gray bin to change the size. Those available are 95-gallon, 65-gallon and 35-gallon. After the 30-day grace period, no changes in size — and the fee assessed — can be made until July 2026. For details and to set up an online portal if the property owner has not already done so, visit sandiego.gov/trash or call 858-694-7000.
Delivery of the City of San Diego’s gray trash bins to homes in Rancho Bernardo’s Westwood neighborhood on Oct. 28. Homeowners could choose among three bin sizes. (Elizabeth Marie Himchak)
The new monthly fee homeowners are being assessed through their property taxes is determined by bin size. For the 2025-26 year, the 95-gallon gray bin has a monthly fee of $43.60. The 65-gallon bin monthly fee is $38.94 and the 35-gallon gray bin monthly fee is $32.82. There is no change in fee if the blue recycling or green bin for organic waste is of a different size.
However, there is an extra fee for service if multiple bins of any color are requested for the property. For example, extra gray trash bins are $17.78 each for 95-gallon, $13.06 for 65-gallon and $6.89 for 35-gallon. An extra 95-gallon blue recycling bin is $9.67 per month more, while an extra 95-gallon green bin is $13.01 per month.
The fees are scheduled to rise in subsequent years.
The new trash removal fees were made possible after voters approved Measure B in November 2022, which repealed the People’s Ordinance of 1919 that did not allow the city to charge for trash removal.
In the fiscal year 2026 property tax bills arriving now, all households paying for the city’s trash service are being assessed $523.20, the fee for one-year of service for those with a 95-gallon gray bin. Those who chose a smaller bin will be credited for the difference once their new bin is delivered. Those credits are to appear on the 2026-27 property tax bill, city officials have said.
The city also plans to replace the dark blue recycling bins with light blue bins. Delivery of those is expected to begin a few months from now, since the priority is to replace the gray bins. The newer green bins — many just delivered in 2023 — will not be replaced unless damaged.
Prior to July 1, the city charged customers $70 for additional black bins, or if the bin was being replaced due to damage, being lost or stolen. There was also a $25 delivery fee if the customer could not pick it up. The delivery fee also applied to blue and green bins. Those fees are no longer being assessed due to the new monthly trash fee.
Bauer said if someone’s black or dark blue bin is damaged to the point that it needs replacement prior to delivery of the new bins, they can request a new black or dark blue bin and there will be no delivery fee or charge for the bins. However, they will not receive the gray or light blue bin until their assigned date.