Council starts Lincoln High Street cleanup

Progress has been made on cleaning up the messy Lincoln High Street over the weekend, after The Lincolnite highlighted the issue last week — though some areas still need extra attention.

The Lincolnite raised concerns over the messy state of the High Street pavements to the City of Lincoln Council last Thursday, and were told that cleaning would take place over the weekend.

Used face masks, rubbish and black stains could be found on the city centre’s pavements, from the High Street to the train station.

Park Street looks far cleaner than it did last week. | Photo: The Lincolnite

We took to the streets of Lincoln on Monday morning to check out the difference from the cleaning.

A lot of the pavements are very clean in Lincoln now. | Photo: The Lincolnite

Some cleaning does appear to have occurred, with key areas of the High Street now looking more presentable for shoppers and residents.

It’s certainly progress! | Photo: The Lincolnite

Most of the black stains that could be seen on the pedestrianised High Street last week are no longer there.

For the most part, the cleanup job is a good one. | Photo: The Lincolnite

However, large quantities of used chewing gum can still be found along the floor and other areas, particularly around the public bins, are still fairly messy.

A few bins have managed to evade the cleanup. | Photo: The Lincolnite

City of Lincoln Council said it would be liaising with street cleaning teams to address the issue, and that deep cleans take place in the city every four weeks.

A lot of used chewing gum is still on the pavement. | Photo: The Lincolnite

A daily cleaning and litter picking programme is meant to take place daily between 6am and 8am, followed by routine bin emptying throughout the day.

There are still a few areas that need addressing, though. | Photo: The Lincolnite

With more and more people coming to the High Street as COVID-19 restrictions relax, it’s a step in the right direction for the city centre.

The public benches look a bit more hygienic now. | Photo: The Lincolnite

Steve Bird, Assistant Director for Communities and Street Scene at City of Lincoln Council said, “We had a successful weekend cleansing the city centre’s streets as we continue our commitment to keeping Lincoln’s High Street clean and tidy for both residents and visitors.

“Our daily thorough street cleansing and litter picking will continue to take place between 6am and 8am seven days a week, backed up by regular litter picking and bin emptying throughout the day.

“However keeping our city centre streets clean is a constant, ongoing process and one which requires residents and visitors to the city to respect our high street, to not drop litter or chewing gum and use the bins provided.

“We appreciate that sometimes accidents happen which could lead to staining of the pavements, which due to the pavement material is difficult to remove, however we continue to do what we can to resolve this when it happens.”