FORT WORTH, Texas — A new Fort Worth ordinance targeting abandoned shopping carts in areas such as streets and parks went into effect over the weekend.
The Fort Worth City Council approved the "Abandoned Shopping Cart Ordinance" in February, and it went into effect on Saturday, July 1.
According to the city's website, the council approved the measure "to regulate the abatement and enforcement of nuisance carts in public areas, to include but not limited to public streets, neighborhoods, parks and waterways."
Under the ordinance, the city's Code Compliance Department will be working to remove shopping carts from public areas as soon as possible.
When a code compliance officer finds an abandoned shopping cart, they will determine which business the cart belongs to and then notify that business that it has 24 hours to pick up the cart, according to the city.
If the cart is still in the area after 24 hours, the city said code compliance officers will then remove it and take it to a nearby City Drop-Off Station, where it will be stored for 30 days.
Businesses will have to pay a fee of $50 per cart to retrieve them at the drop-off stations, the city said.
According to the ordinance, however, if the business has a functioning wheel-lock system, a fee will not have to be paid to pick up their carts.
The city said the ordinance also consists of a Shopping Cart Control Plan that businesses may have to assess if code compliance officers have to impound more than 15 abandoned carts within a six-month period.
The control plan could include guidelines such as a sensor-based wheel-lock system or additional cart corrals in parking lots for the impacted businesses.