St Albans recycling centre on Ronsons Way opens 10am to 5.30pm and shuts every Tuesday and Wednesday. Harpenden shuts Thursday and Friday. ePass and Christmas.

St Albans tip opening times are simple once you know the two closed days. The St Albans recycling centre on Ronsons Way is open 10am to 5.30pm on Monday and Thursday to Sunday, and closed every Tuesday and Wednesday. Harpenden’s Dark Lane centre runs the other way: open Monday to Wednesday and at the weekend, closed Thursday and Friday. Both are run by Hertfordshire County Council, both need a free ePass linked to your number plate, and both shut on only three days a year: Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

The quick answer

Opening hours, side by side

The county council publishes one set of hours for each site. There is no separate summer and winter timetable on either page.

Recycling centre opening hours for the St Albans district, from Hertfordshire County Council's site pages, checked 25 September 2026.
DaySt Albans (Ronsons Way)Harpenden (Dark Lane)
Monday10am to 5.30pm10am to 5.30pm
TuesdayClosed10am to 5.30pm
WednesdayClosed10am to 5.30pm
Thursday10am to 5.30pmClosed
Friday10am to 5.30pmClosed
Saturday10am to 5.30pm10am to 5.30pm
Sunday10am to 5.30pm10am to 5.30pm

The two closed pairs do not overlap, so if Ronsons Way is shut on a Tuesday, Dark Lane is open, and the reverse on a Thursday. The county’s St Albans page carries a live queue camera and advises visitors to “try to avoid school and bank holidays”.

The ePass: what it is and who needs one

Hertfordshire moved its recycling centres to an ePass system. The county’s page says “if you live in Hertfordshire, you can apply for a free, instant ePass for your car”, supplying an email address, home address and vehicle registration. An automatic number plate recognition camera reads the plate at the entrance, so there is nothing to show on a phone. The car ePass lasts three years with no limit on visits (Recycling centre ePass for Hertfordshire residents).

The rules for households and other vehicles (Recycling centre ePasses):

  • A household can hold up to three ePasses at a time: three car passes, or two car passes and one van and trailer pass
  • A van and trailer ePass is valid for 12 visits in 12 months, one per household; if you arrive without one, site staff can help you apply on the spot if you have proof of address (Van and trailer ePass)
  • Hire vehicle ePasses last seven days, with three visits each, and a household can apply for four in a year
  • Bring proof of address on every visit: a driving licence, council tax bill, Hertfordshire bus pass or a utility bill. You must pay council tax to a Hertfordshire council to use the sites

What both sites take

Both pages list the same materials: wood, mixed recycling, hardcore and rubble, scrap metal, rigid plastics, garden waste, glass, paper, plasterboard, cardboard, fridges and freezers, large and small appliances, soil, soft furnishings, textiles and household batteries. Neither takes business waste. DIY and home improvement waste is accepted only in limited amounts, and the county warns that anyone over the limit “may be turned away”, so check its DIY restrictions before loading a car with rubble or plasterboard.

Garden waste is on the list, which matters in January: Christmas trees can go to either site. Only garden waste subscribers get a kerbside tree collection, and that does not restart until 11 January 2027; the detail is on our Christmas bin collections page.

Christmas and New Year 2026/27

Both site pages say the same thing: “we’re open on all bank holidays except Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.” For this winter that means:

  • Friday 25 December 2026: closed
  • Saturday 26 December 2026: closed
  • Friday 1 January 2027: closed

Monday 28 December is a substitute bank holiday for Boxing Day this year (GOV.UK bank holidays). It is not one of the three named closure days, and Monday is a normal opening day at both sites, so on the county’s published rule both are open. We will check the site pages in December in case the county adds a closure for the substitute day, and update this page.

The bin rounds are the bigger Christmas story: the district council has already printed that collections will run up to four days behind and will not be back to normal until 18 January 2027.

Bulky items and what the district council does instead

The recycling centres are the county’s. Kerbside bins, garden waste subscriptions and bulky waste collections are St Albans City and District Council’s, and our bin collection days page covers those, including the 5am rule and the round 1 and round 2 split.

What is still to be confirmed

  • Any extra Christmas closure beyond the three named days. Checked against both site pages on 25 September 2026; we will look again in the first week of December.
  • DIY waste limits are on a separate county page and can change; check it before a big clear-out.