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We have a question on your collateral cousin's site: Travel. It was voted off-topic but still has interest. Perhaps you can entertain it here?

A traveller was on walk-about in Luxembourg and observed that there is an apparent uniformity with respect to the way rubbish bins are left outside for collection. It is in a purpose built pit roughly 55 cm/25 inches deep. The photo is uploaded here as a matter of convenience...

enter image description here

We understand that there is practical merit to this arrangement...

  • Wind is less likely to knock them over;
  • Feral animals are less likely to knock them over;
  • They are less likely to fall upon and injure a toddler;

...but these reasons are speculation and not nailed down with the precision that would satisfy an interested person. There has been other speculation that the placement of rubbish bins is a regulated activity and a different line of thought that it may be expensive (either to install or to place the bins there for collection). Part of a building code for Luxembourg? I have suggested that there might be a cultural influence like "monkey see monkey do".

Have any of YOU contemplated having this type of rubbish bin 'repository'? What do you call it so as to help Googlers?

Question: is there something peculiar to Luxembourg to cause rubbish bins to be configured this way? Or more generally, are there other locales where one can see the same uniformity?

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    Just curious is the bin sitting in a pit? – Ed Beal Aug 30 '16 at 13:59
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    Seems like an awkward shape & weight to dead-lift out of a hole - I would have at least put a sloping side in to drag it up ... – brhans Aug 30 '16 at 14:06
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    @Freiheit - the way I use my 'outdoor' garbage can is I empty household garbage into it daily and then 'put it out' for collection weekly. So I'd be putting my daily garbage into the can-in-a-hole and then lifting it out full(-ish) once a week. – brhans Aug 30 '16 at 14:14
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    Can the truck reach the bin when it is placed in this hole or must the bin be removed from the hole to reach the curb? – Freiheit Aug 30 '16 at 14:37
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    @Freiheit there is no observer to rely upon to tell us if the bin must be manually removed. My guess is no, it is automated, but that guess relies solely on my experience of living in an EU country (which may be laced with cynicism). They will undertake any expense, and I mean ANY expense, to avoid having people engaged in demeaning 'manual labour'. Note that the lifting grip is facing towards the driveway. That's all we have to go on, sorry – Gayot Fow Aug 30 '16 at 15:13
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I'm from Luxembourg and have never seen such a hole to put the dustbins in.

We usually store them somewhere in or around the house, and put them out on the curb.

It definitely seems to be isolated to a specific house / street / neighbourhood.

The bin itself is regulated of course and contains a chip that holds the owners information.

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    Done and dusted. Local knowledge was needed for this question and it was provided. I see you are active in Travel already, don't make yourself a stranger :) – Gayot Fow Aug 30 '16 at 22:14
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Via a Luxembourg regular visitor on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/Luxembourg/comments/50cxwq/can_a_luxembourg_resident_answer_this/d73vb3y

These receptacles are build right next to the entrance-way, need little space and as they are built into the ground you can easily hide the ugly trashbin with hedges and bushes around them.

This simply seems to be an aesthetic feature to make the bin less obvious. No purpose for automated pickup or weather or anything else.

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  • +1, I am grateful you thought enough of this question to cross-post to another q+a site with local knowledge. – Gayot Fow Aug 31 '16 at 16:09

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