FRESNO (KMJ) — ‘Don’t Trash Our Highway’ is the message Caltrans wants to get through to us all.
It comes during a campaign to highlight a crackdown on litter being thrown out on the roads – and both volunteers and officials with Caltrans will spend Tuesday morning clearing up after us.
Caltrans says they spend almost $20 million picking up trash left by the side of the road – money that could actually be used to fund real improvements to our highway network.
Today’s clean up effort in Fresno is actually part of a week long state-wide event. During last year’s push – on a single day – officials state wide picked up almost 3000 cubic yards of litter filling 190 garbage trucks.
“We actually collected kitchen sinks, we see a lot of furniture, we see mattresses, ladders”, reveals Caltrans’ Gloria Rodriguez. “We also sometimes see new items that people have purchased at the store and unfortunately we find them in boxes damaged because they’re not tarped down – or strapped down”.
Their advice is to remember to take a bag to put all your trash in – and if you’re taking something that’s too big to fit inside the car remember to strap it down securely. It’s hoped the effort will result in permanently cleaner road sides and surrounding countryside.
“Litter and cigarette butts end up in our oceans and our rivers and our waterways”, adds Gloria. “And we don’t want to pollute the environment”.
To make sure the message sticks – CHP officers will be increasing enforcement efforts over the coming week and issue citations to motorists seen to be littering.
