Frequently Asked Questions

Vogel Disposal Services Inc.

A Municipal Solid Waste contract is awarded via an open bid process. The Board of Supervisors solicits bids and outlines criteria to be included by prospective providers. The Board then considers those bids before awarding five-year contracts with options for extensions. 

The Board approved the bid process on February 1, 2024, and approved the five-year contract with Vogel Disposal Services on March 28, 2024.

Two companies submitted bids: Vogel Disposal Services and Waste Management. Vogel’s winning bid was $15 million less at $23,017,001.06 for five years. 

The contract includes the Township’s Collection Connection program, which covers residential trash, yard waste and recycling collection, disposal, and processing. The contract also has extension options after five years.

The five-year agreement includes trucks operated with environmentally friendly compressed natural gas, GIS equipped trucks, separate downsized trucks for collections on narrow streets and alleys, a dedicated route supervisor, and pre-route driver training.

The contract also allows the Township to better manage the service and hold the provider accountable. 

The Township also provides three Household Hazardous Waste events each year, as well as year-round cardboard recycling via the Cardboard Compactor at the Municipal Center.

As of May 2024, rates are:

•    35-gallon cart - $27.50

•    64-gallon cart - $28.85

•    96-gallon cart - $29.75

•    No cart/bag service only - $20.62

The municipal waste industry has experienced much change since the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Municipalities throughout Pennsylvania have seen increases anywhere from 20-80% in their new contracts. Many of the previous contracts were awarded prior to the pandemic and are done multiple years at a time. This locks in rates regardless of external factors.

Now, rates and contracts are catching up to the challenges caused by the pandemic. 

In addition to economic considerations created by the pandemic, industry officials cite increased worker compensation costs, increased wages across all vocations, rising fuel costs, and the overall cost of automated collection. 

To cut costs, many communities are shifting to bi-weekly collection or eliminating yard waste collections entirely. 

Cranberry Township will continue to offer weekly trash, recycling, and in-season yard waste collection.

Customers will see incremental changes beginning in May 2024, with additional increases planned for November 2024. The five-year contract includes yearly increases from Vogel. Rates will be adjusted to reflect these increases.