For many years, people living in Fishers were on their own when it came to trash. Every household either contracted directly with a hauler or hoped its homeowners association had negotiated a decent deal. As prices climbed, city officials decided it was time to look at a citywide residential contract.

For years, readers asked me a simple question: What is the trash schedule for the holiday? I had to be honest. I did not know. It depended entirely on which company you hired and what that company decided to do.

That changed Jan. 13, 2025, when Republic Services began collecting for all of incorporated Fishers under a 10-year contract with the city. Three haulers bid on the work. Republic, which already served roughly 60% of the Fishers market, came in with the best bid at $16.39 a month for the first year. The rate is $17.33 a month in 2026 and shows up on your city utility bill. Before the contract, city officials said nearly half of Fishers households were paying more than $30 a month, and the single flat rate would mean savings for about 85% of residents.

The contract did something else that is less obvious but just as useful. It gave the entire city one holiday schedule.

So, a reminder: trash collection in Fishers is delayed one day this Labor Day week. If your normal collection day is Monday, your pickup is Tuesday. If your day is Friday, it moves to Saturday.

I hear only scattered complaints about trash service in Fishers, so I think it is fair to call this one a success story for city government.

For future reference, here is how the holiday schedule works.

The holidays: New Year’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The shift: When one of those holidays falls Monday through Friday, collection for that day and every remaining day that week is pushed back one day. A Thursday pickup moves to Friday, and Friday moves to Saturday.

What you get: Weekly trash collection with two 96-gallon carts, curbside recycling every other week, yard waste pickup in April and November at 20 bags per pickup, and bundled branch collection. Bulk item pickups cost $25 and extra bag tags are $2.50 each, both arranged directly with Republic.

One caveat worth knowing: the contract covers the incorporated portions of Fishers. If you are not certain your address is included, the city keeps a mapping tool on its website.

Provider: Republic Services, under contract with the City of Fishers.