Dearborn has started its annual collection of leaves raked into the street and will continue the program until Friday, Dec. 7, weather permitting.
     Leaves raked into the street will be picked up on a neighborhood’s trash day, on the week that is not a recycling week.  
    
Note that crews will not always be able to pick up leaves from an entire district in one trash day.  They will return where they left off during that district’s next trash day that is not on a recycling week.
    
Crews expect to be in every district collecting leaves raked into the street at least two times during the fall season.
    
For safety reasons, don’t rake your leaves into the street until it is close to the time when they will be picked up. Large piles of loose leaves that linger in the street can cause slippery conditions, or lead to car fires.
    
For a weekly schedule of loose leafs raked into the street , call the Leaf Hotline at 943-2444.
    
Note that information on the hotline is given by sections (see leaf collection map below). Section 1 is Monday, Section 2 is Tuesday, Section 3 is Wednesday, Section 4 is Thursday and Section 5 is Friday.
    
Leaves are picked up during non-recycling weeks, so there are also letters associated with each section on the hotline information.  Section 3-A, for instance, refers to Wednesday trash day, for the neighborhoods that are on the Recycling Week A schedule.  
    
Section 3-B refers to Wednesday trash days for neighborhoods on the Recycling Week B schedule.
  
All residents have green recycling carts, which are stamped with either an A or B on the lid to let you know what recycling schedule you are on.  
    
For the week of Oct. 22-Oct. 26, crews will be in recycling week A sections.
    
For the week of Oct. 29-Nov.2, crews will be in recycling week B sections.
    
“A simple way to remember when to rake your leaves into the street is to do it on the day before your trash day when it is not your recycling week,” said Jim Murray, director of the Department of Public Works.
    
Raking them into the street is just one method of disposing of leaves, said Murray.
    
Dearborn residents are reminded that leaves may be raked and put in proper containers or yard waste paper bags, and set out on the curb on trash day. Leaves in containers or paper bags are picked up every trash day.
  
 “So, if you don’t want to wait for loose leaf collection, bag your leaves and put them on the curb on your trash day,” said Murray. “That way, you can keep on top of the raking and you don’t need to remember a schedule.”
  
 Leaves in plastic bags or in cardboard boxes will not be picked up.