by KYW's Michelle Durham

The City of Philadelphia has begun center city testing of a high-tech trash receptacle that officials hope will not only keep the streets cleaner but also reduce the number of trash collections.

Streets commissioner Clarena Tolson says the solar-powered trash can includes an internal compactor that compresses the trash after it is deposited:

"Trash cans like this which are eco-friendly, which provide some efficiencies that we are looking forward to in terms of collections, is our future. This is where we have to go."

Tolson says there's another benefit to these receptacles:

"They tend not to be abuse targets. You can't fit a carpet in there, you can't fit a refrigerator. These are all things we've seen in litter baskets."

Once the trash inside breaks an electric eye, she says, it signals the compactor inside to operate and compress the trash, increasing its effective capacity:

"The present city containers hold 55 gallons. This 'Big Belly' system that we're going to be testing holds 200 gallons of trash."

The solar-powered compactor is fueled by ambient sunlight and can go three weeks without being charged.

City officials say that Streets Department employees won't have to make as many visits to empty the containers. Besides personnel costs, they hope to save fuel and cut related vehicle pollution.

City officials have placed three of the new receptacles in center city -- one on Chestnut Street and two on Walnut Street -- to see how they do during the next three months or so, before they decide to buy more. Similar receptacles have also been undergoing testing in the University City area.