Athlone Refuse Transfer Station — Hours, Address and Hazardous Waste

Athlone Refuse Transfer Station sits on Settlers Way, Athlone and opens 08:00–18:30 on summer weekdays (1 September – 30 April), 08:00–17:00 on winter weekdays (1 May – 31 August), 08:00–17:00 on Saturdays and public holidays, and 09:00–14:00 on Sundays. It is one of only two Cape Town sites that accept household hazardous waste. Entry is free for households. The limit is three loads per vehicle per day, and the vehicle or trailer must not exceed 1,5 tons. Loads must be sorted before arrival — unsorted loads are turned away at the gate.

Athlone Refuse Transfer Station Opening Hours

A refuse transfer station consolidates incoming loads and trucks them to a landfill, so Athlone handles volume without being a disposal site itself. Waste dropped here ends up at one of the metro's operating landfills.

The Hazardous Waste Exception

Only the Athlone Refuse Transfer Station and the Bellville Refuse Transfer Station accept household hazardous waste, limited to 50 kg per resident per day. That covers the material every other site refuses at the gate. Households south and east of the city centre have Athlone as their nearest option for it; the northern suburbs have Bellville on Sacks Circle, which keeps identical hours.

Which Suburbs Use Athlone

Athlone Refuse Transfer Station is the nearest municipal site for Athlone itself and serves the surrounding Cape Flats — Rylands, Gatesville, Crawford, Hanover Park and Manenberg. Hanover Park has the Induland drop-off on Induland Avenue as its nearer option.

Athlone Compared With the Other Major Sites

Athlone matches Coastal Park hour for hour across all four bands. The difference between them is what they take, not when they open: Athlone accepts household hazardous waste and Coastal Park does not.

What Athlone Refuse Transfer Station Accepts

Every load must be sorted before arrival. Unsorted or contaminated loads are refused at the gate and diverted to the nearest landfill, which turns one trip into two. Five streams are taken:

• Clean garden waste — grass and cuttings. Branches run to a maximum of 1,2 m long and 300 mm in diameter. Bagged garden refuse must be emptied out as directed.
• Clean builder's rubble — broken bricks, sand, stone, cement and plaster, with no paper, plastic or timber mixed through it.
• Garage waste — separated and contained, to a maximum of three loads per day.
• Recycling — paper, cardboard, cans, metal, plastic, milk and juice cartons, glass bottles and polystyrene.
• E-waste and motor oil — at the designated recycling area. E-waste excludes batteries.

What Athlone Refuse Transfer Station Will Not Take

Three categories are refused outright at every Cape Town drop-off site: organic kitchen waste, hazardous waste and rubber waste, which covers tyres. Athlone is the exception on hazardous waste — it accepts household hazardous waste up to 50 kg per resident per day, which every site other than Bellville refuses.

Garden service companies fall under the same three-load ceiling as households, and capacity on the day governs whether a load is accepted at all.

How Far the Athlone Refuse Transfer Station Load Limit Goes

Athlone Refuse Transfer Station allows three loads per vehicle per day, with the vehicle or trailer under 1,5 tons. Measured against the skip capacities published on this site, that ceiling decides most jobs on its own. Three loads sits between the 2m³ mini skip and the 4m³ midi skip.

A bathroom strip-out or a small garden clearance fits inside the daily allowance and costs nothing but fuel and time. A kitchen refit at four bakkie loads runs past it, which means a second day at the gate or a bin on the property.

When Athlone Refuse Transfer Station Is Closed

Three municipal sites sit within reach once Athlone Refuse Transfer Station is shut or at capacity. Summer weekday and Sunday hours are shown; every site closes earlier between 1 May and 31 August.

Public holidays follow the Saturday timetable. The seasonal changeover falls on 1 September and 1 May, and the winter table applies from 1 May through 31 August.

When a Skip Costs Less Than the Trip

A drop-off site is free, which makes it the right answer for one or two sorted bakkie loads. The three-load ceiling and the 1,5-ton vehicle limit are what change the arithmetic on a bigger job: a full room strip-out, a bathroom renovation or a garden clearance runs past three loads, and each load is a return trip in fuel and hours. Skip Hire Cape Town delivers a bin to the property from R700 all-inclusive of delivery, collection and licensed disposal, or sends a crew to load and haul the waste when there is no space for a bin. Compare capacity on the skip sizes Cape Town guide, or read the full skip hire prices ladder before deciding.

Frequently Asked Questions

Full list: all 29 sites with hours and rules are on the Cape Town refuse drop-off sites guide.