Based on the last Sanitation Worker notice, Exam No. 2060 (2022). The next exam has not been announced, and its notice may list different abilities.
The official notice is the only outline of the NYC Sanitation Worker exam. It says the multiple-choice test "may include questions requiring the use of" seven abilities and gives a job example for each. This guide explains each one with an original practice example. None of them is a real test question.
What the notice says, and what it does not
The test was given at a computer terminal, and you needed at least 70% to pass. Your score set your place on the list. Some questions "may need to be answered on the basis of documents or other information supplied" on the test date. The notice gives no number of questions, no time limit and no weight for each ability, and "may include" means that not every ability is sure to appear.
The notice also lists the task areas the questions were built around: roll call activities; waste collection and removal; preparing, operating and maintaining vehicles and equipment; communicating information; garage tasks; snow removal, weather and emergencies; and forms, reports and logs. That is why the examples below are set on a route, in a garage or during a snowstorm.
1. Written Comprehension
Official definition: "understanding written sentences and paragraphs." (Notice 2060)
What it means: You read a short passage, then answer from what it says, not from what you know about the job. The notice's job example is reviewing operation manuals for assigned vehicles and equipment.
Practice example
Made-up memo: When a Level 2 snow alert is declared, all collection routes stop. Workers on collection report to their garage for plow assignments. A worker who is in the middle of a block when the alert is declared finishes that block, then returns to the garage. Salt spreaders leave the garage only after a supervisor has checked their chains.
Sanitation Worker Ruiz is halfway down a block when a Level 2 alert is declared. According to the memo, what should he do?
- A. Finish the rest of his route, then return to the garage
- B. Stop at once and drive straight to the garage
- C. Finish the block he is on, then return to the garage
- D. Wait on the block until a supervisor checks his chains
Show answer
Answer: C. The memo says a worker in the middle of a block finishes that block, then returns. A goes too far, because routes stop. B ignores the rule about finishing the block. D mixes in the chain check, which is for salt spreaders leaving the garage.
Tip: Find the sentence that matches the case exactly. Here that is the sentence about being in the middle of a block.
2. Problem Sensitivity
Official definition: "being able to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It includes being able to identify the whole problem as well as elements of the problem." (Notice 2060)
What it means: You look at a scene and pick the detail that signals trouble. The other details are normal. The notice's job example is telling if something is wrong with the truck that will lead to a mechanical failure.
Practice example
During a pre-trip check at 6:00 AM, Sanitation Worker Okafor notes the following about the truck.
Which detail most likely points to a mechanical problem?
- A. The fuel gauge shows the tank is three-quarters full
- B. A puddle of fluid under the front of the truck that was not there yesterday
- C. The hopper is empty from the night before
- D. The route sheet for the day is on the dashboard
Show answer
Answer: B. A new puddle under the front of the truck can mean a leak, which can lead to a breakdown. A full-enough tank, an empty hopper and a route sheet on the dashboard are all normal at the start of a shift.
Tip: Ask which detail is different from a normal day, and what it could lead to.
3. Written Expression
Official definition: "using English words or sentences in writing so that others will understand." (Notice 2060)
What it means: You pick the sentence that is clear, complete and correct. Wrong options leave out facts or are built badly. The notice's job example is writing an accident report.
Practice example
Sanitation Worker Chen is writing an accident report.
Which sentence is the clearest and most complete?
- A. Backing out of the dead end, the gray sedan's mirror was hit by the truck on Elm Street.
- B. At 7:15 AM, I was backing the truck out of the dead end on Elm Street, the truck's right mirror hit a parked car's mirror.
- C. The truck's mirror hit a car's mirror while backing up.
- D. At 7:15 AM, while I was backing the truck out of the dead end on Elm Street, the truck's right mirror struck the side mirror of a parked gray sedan.
Show answer
Answer: D. D gives the time, the place, what happened and who was driving, in one correct sentence. A says the sedan was backing out (a dangling modifier) and has no time. B joins two sentences with only a comma. C leaves out the time and place.
Tip: Check each option for the time, the place, who did what and a sentence that is built correctly.
4. Information Ordering
Official definition: "following correctly a rule or set of rules or actions in a certain order. The rule or set of rules used must be given." (Notice 2060)
What it means: You follow the steps you are given, in order, and apply any exception. The notice's job example is returning parts, tools and vehicles to the garage in the correct order at the end of a shift.
Practice example
Made-up end-of-shift procedure: (1) Park the truck in its assigned bay. (2) Hand in the route sheet at the supervisor's desk. (3) Return hand tools to the tool rack. (4) Return the truck keys after the supervisor signs the route sheet. If the truck has any defect, fill out a defect card before step 2. Sanitation Worker Jackson has parked the truck in its bay and noticed a cracked side mirror.
What should Jackson do next?
- A. Fill out a defect card
- B. Hand in the route sheet
- C. Return the hand tools
- D. Return the truck keys
Show answer
Answer: A. The cracked mirror is a defect, and the exception says to fill out a defect card before step 2. B would be next only if the truck had no defect. C and D come later in the order.
Tip: Read the exceptions first. They change which step is next.
5. Deductive Reasoning
Official definition: "applying general rules to specific problems and coming up with logical answers." (Notice 2060)
What it means: You apply a stated rule to a case. Each wrong option fails one part of the rule. The notice's job example is blocking off traffic and acting as a flag-person in bad weather.
Practice example
Made-up rule: On bulk day, a crew picks up a large item only if a pickup appointment number is taped to it. A mattress or box spring must also be in a sealed plastic bag.
Which item should the crew pick up?
- A. A mattress with an appointment number taped to it and no plastic bag
- B. A sofa with an appointment number taped to it
- C. A dresser with no appointment number
- D. A box spring in a sealed plastic bag with no appointment number
Show answer
Answer: B. The sofa has an appointment number, and the bag rule does not apply to sofas. A has no bag, C has no number and D has no number.
Tip: Check every condition for every option. One missing condition is enough to rule an item out.
6. Spatial Orientation
Official definition: "determining where you are in relation to the location of some object or where the object is in relation to you." (Notice 2060)
What it means: You work out direction and distance from a description or a map. The notice does not say how these questions look; our example uses words only. The notice's job example is planning a route on receiving the daily work assignment.
Practice example
Made-up layout: You are driving north on 3rd Avenue and have just stopped at 12th Street. Street numbers go up as you go north, one block per number. Your supervisor is waiting at 3rd Avenue and 9th Street.
How do you get to your supervisor?
- A. Keep going north for 3 blocks
- B. Turn east and go 3 blocks
- C. Turn around and go south for 3 blocks
- D. Turn around and go south for 9 blocks
Show answer
Answer: C. 9th Street is three numbers lower than 12th Street, and lower numbers are to the south, so you go south 3 blocks. A goes the wrong way. B leaves 3rd Avenue. D uses the street number as the distance.
Tip: Write down where you are, which way you face and which way the numbers run before you choose.
7. Inductive Reasoning
Official definition: "combining separate pieces of information or specific answers to problems to form general rules or conclusions; to think of possible reasons for why things go together." (Notice 2060)
What it means: You look at several facts and choose the explanation that fits all of them. The notice's job example is doing new weather-related tasks, such as spreading salt, while following standard procedures.
Practice example
Made-up facts: Over five snow days, salt spreaders on Routes 4, 7 and 9 ran out of salt before finishing. Routes 2 and 5 always finished. All five routes are the same length. Drivers rotate among all five routes each day. Every truck is loaded from the same salt pile. Routes 4, 7 and 9 each cross a bridge, where the procedure calls for a double layer of salt.
Which conclusion fits the facts best?
- A. The double layer on the bridges uses up the salt on Routes 4, 7 and 9
- B. The drivers on Routes 4, 7 and 9 spread too much salt
- C. Routes 4, 7 and 9 are longer than Routes 2 and 5
- D. The salt loaded for Routes 4, 7 and 9 was wetter
Show answer
Answer: A. Only the bridge fact separates the three routes that ran out from the two that did not. B fails because drivers rotate among all routes. C fails because all routes are the same length. D fails because every truck loads from the same pile.
Tip: Look for the one fact the problem cases share and the other cases do not.
How to use this now
The exam is not scheduled yet, so you have time to build these skills slowly. Read memos and manuals line by line and answer only from the text. When you apply a rule, check every condition. When you write, put the time, the place and who did what in one clear sentence. Watch for the next notice, because it can add or drop abilities. Our guide to when the next NYC sanitation exam is explains how to find out when filing opens, and the Sanitation Worker requirements cover the CDL, age and medical rules.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are on the NYC Sanitation Worker exam?
That is not published. The 2022 notice gave no question count and no time limit, so treat exact numbers you see elsewhere as unofficial.
Will the next exam test the same abilities?
Nobody knows yet. The list changed between 2014 and 2022, so read the next notice when it posts.
Can I use a calculator?
Not in 2022. The notice says calculators were not permitted.
Is there an official practice test?
We found none from DCAS or DSNY. The examples on this page are our own.
PrepRaven is not affiliated with or endorsed by the City of New York, the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, the Department of Sanitation or any City agency. The practice examples on this page are original and are not taken from any real exam.
Last updated October 2026