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Comprehensive Review of S olid W aste Collection and Disposal Options v2.1 46 10/22/12 customers. Commercial collections customers also include numerous public entities: schools, Town offices, parks and recreation, etc. Commercial service customers are generally described as an entity which maintains one or more bulk solid waste containers (i.e., dumpster) collected weekly by the Town front loader vehicles. The Town provides service to these customers 5 days per week as requested in accordance with a published fee schedule. Collections have been historically managed daily among two (2) separate routes with a collection vehicle assigned to each route. Like the residential collections, these routes have been established over time without the benefit of a technical routing evaluation. In addition to these customers with bulk containers, commercial collections include approximately 16 customers that use residential roll-carts serviced by the Town’s rear loader collection vehicles. 4.1.2.1 Routing Software Several software companies offer routing services and software that could benefit the residential and commercial collections routes. A technical routing evaluation, utilizing GIS data and route modeling iterations would promote increased collection efficiencies, lower collections costs, and would likely improve customer satisfaction. The goal of such evaluation would be to maximize collection volumes while compressing on-route total traveling distances. Furthermore routing software will allow new customers to be easily integrated into the existing routes. The estimated cost of commercial routing software is about $15,000 to $25,000 for the software. Periodic updates are required as the software is enhanced or if the service area changes substantially. It is expected that staff time to maintain the routing software will be minimal. 4.1.2.2 Collections Route Start Time SCS observed that each of the two (2) commercial collections routes initiated their route at 5:30 a.m. The route drivers typically work a 5 to 6 hour day and make two (2) trips to the Orange County Landfill. The commercial route drivers indicated that the current collections schedule is impacted by daily routine traffic congestion, primarily in the business district. Starting the commercial collection routes earlier in the day, and targeting the downtown business district first, would allow vehicles to collect containers more efficiently in these urban areas where traffic and parked vehicles can cause delays later in the day. Furthermore, an earlier start would benefit the driver’s direct hauling a longer distance to a transfer station by mitigating congestion delays. Chapel Hill Code of Ordinances, Chapter 11, Article 3, Section 11-40(o) provides a noise exemption for sanitation and recycling services operating between the hours of 5:30 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. with approval by the Town Manager. Authorizing an earlier start time would require modification of the Town ordinance and approval from the Town Manager. The downtown business district is a concentrated commercial area subject to minimal residential noise impact. Based on several commercial collection noise studies for other SCS clients involving similar waste containers and collection vehicles, SCS has concluded that the greatest noise level generated during a tipping event is caused by the shifting and dumping of the waste in the container and not the vehicle or raising of the container itself. In general, the results of studies near active commercial areas determined that the noise generated during a collection event is not much greater than background from traffic and other commercial activity (i.e.,