The present article is an operative proposal for the recycling service from an analysis of the work of the waste pickers in the center of Bogota D.C., Colombia. The routes were georeferenced and surveys were applied to analyze the socioeconomic and labor conditions. The variables associated with the collection of usable waste were identified. Three types of collection were found, unattended areas (mainly residential), overlapping routes and other problems. It was obtained that the income of the recyclers is associated with five variables. A design was made optimizing the recycling routes and modifying the free competition scheme, giving way to the zoning of the service that guarantees the coverage of all users and the financial suf ficiency of the organizations.