A spring clean of the A4174 Avon Ring Road has produced a mammoth 550 bags of rubbish.
The clean up, conducted by South Gloucestershire Council over a three week period, involved considerable resources, including lane closures. The rubbish is thought to have been thrown out of vehicles or escaped from unsecured loads.
The spring clean was accompanied by a joint operation between council officers and the police targeting both individual motorists who throw rubbish from their cars and hauliers who allow waste to escape from their vehicles.
Littering motorists are liable to pay a £75 fixed penalty notice whilst hauliers can be fined considerably more – last year a local company received a fine and costs totalling £3,520 after being found guilty of allowing waste to escape from one of its vehicles onto the ring road.
Cllr Heather Goddard, executive member for communities, said: “The council spends around £50,000 every year to clear up litter, debris and the results of fly tipping on the ring road. This is a significant sum of money, so the council is committed to enforcement action to catch litter offenders and fly tippers in the act.
“The message is simple – if you are a motorist take your litter home with you and do not throw it from your vehicle. If you are a haulier ensure that all loads are secured and that waste does not escape onto the highway. Our officers are on patrol to ensure that these simple rules are adhered to.”
The clean up took place in March and further operations will be carried out this year.
Source: South Gloucestershire Council
