Raleigh, N.C. — Recycling routes have been one or two days behind schedule in recent weeks, delays that Raleigh officials blame on the summer heat.

Green recycling bins in some neighborhoods have been sitting by the curb for one to two days after the scheduled collection days.

Seil O'Loughlin said city crews have been late in picking up her recycling for three weeks in a row.

"I'm not angry. I would like to see it go. I mean, the whole idea is to recycle, so I'd like to see it go to recycling rather than the landfill," O'Loughlin said.

Mayor Charles Meeker said hot weather puts recycling behind so trash collection can remain on schedule.

Some trash collection trucks overheated, forcing officials to shift other trucks from collecting recycling to collecting trash, said Phillip White, assistant director of the Solid Waste Services Department. Workers also were allowed to stop their routes early on extremely hot days.

"There are some hot days workers are asked not to finish their routes because of heat exhaustion problems. Recycling staffs are outside the trucks all day by and large, and quite often, things do get behind, particularly at the end of the week,"  Meeker said.

Officials said all recycling routes would be caught up by the end of Friday, though some homes around the city still had full recycling bins out late Friday afternoon.