ERSB launches alert system for garbage collection

By Mark Squibb

The Eastern Regional Service Boad (ERSB) has subscribed to the notification service Voyent Alert! In a bid to better communicate directly to residents.
“It allows us to send out timely information about waste collection, delays, changes of schedule, weather events, that sort of thing,” said Chairman Steve Tessier. “So, if a resident signs up for it, it allows us to keep in contact with them and keep them in the loop with what’s going on with their garbage collection.”
You can find the link to sign up on the ERSB website, and choose to receive alerts by text, email, or landline.
Tessier said timely notifications about collection disruptions will still be published on the board’s websites and social media pages, but Voyent allows the ERSB to communicate more directly to residents.
“This is something that people were looking for,” said Tessier. “People were looking for better communication from Eastern Regional Service Board and I think this is giving it to them. This is on top of the ads we put in The Shoreline and any mail outs that we do, but it’s one more tool in the toolbox to get our message to the residents so that they’re informed and that they’re kept in the loop.”
Tessier said over 4,000 people have signed up for the alert since it was launched in January, and he’s pleased with the response so far and expects more will sign up in the coming months.
He said it cost somewhere between $10,000 and $12,000 to get the system up-and-running, in addition to the annual subscription fee.
“I felt it was worth the money,” said Tessier, who said that improving communications with residents has been one of his goals since being named chairman almost two years ago. “We looked at a bunch of different systems to find a good system that worked. And we checked around with the municipalities, and this one in particular is well done.”
Tessier added the ERSB isn’t privy to who has signed up for the notification system, as that information remains with the software provider.