June 11, 2021 10.58 am This story is over 33 months old

Finally! Councils clean 100 bags of trash from A46 Lincoln bypass verges

Now motorists have to keep it tidy too
100 bags of rubbish were collected by council teams after a litter pick on the A46 Lincoln Bypass dual carriageway. | Photo: WLDC

West Lindsey District and Lincolnshire County Council finally cleared some 100 bags of rubbish from verges on the A46 Lincoln bypass dual carriageway, some four months after The Lincolnite supported people’s calls for a proper clean up, as fed-up volunteers found trash over 10 years old.

When roadside littering reared its ugly head in Lincolnshire again earlier this year, councils across the county appeared to be passing the buck over who’s responsible for cleaning up, without taking any action.

The issued was raised by The Lincolnite reader Rebecca Dunn, who went to clean up part of the roadside on the Western Bypass in Lincoln. Some of the litter that was found dated back 17 years to 2004. She said she was consistently asking West Lindsey District Council about roadside cleaning for over two years, but nothing was done about it — that is until this week!

An alarming amount of bags filled by roadside litter on just one stretch of Lincoln’s roads. | Photo: Rebecca Dunn

The street cleaning team from West Lindsey District Council worked from 6pm until midnight on the evening on Thursday, June 3 and collected the large amounts of rubbish in the process. They worked alongside Lincolnshire County Council’s traffic management team.

Both sides of the dual carriageway, including the centre reservation, from the A15 roundabout to Burton Bridge overpass, were litter picked. The council said it also collected 200 bags of rubbish from the A46 single carriageway in May 2021.

A follow-up litter pick has already been scheduled for September 2, which is excellent news for Lincolnshire residents and expected visitors alike.

Great work! West Lindsey cleaning teams on the job on the A46 Lincoln. | Photo: WLDC

Councillor Tracey Coulson, Chair of the Sustainability, Climate Change and Environment Strategy Working group at West Lindsey District Council, said: “It is a pleasure to see councils working together to keep our local environment clean.

“As we approach the heart of summer, the majority of us delight in seeing the outdoors in its full colour, and keeping our own environment clean is one small step we can take to creating and keeping a fully healthy and colourful environment.

“Members and Officers at West Lindsey District Council know we can do more to help our local climate – and those on the working group will be presenting our draft climate strategy to Full Council on June 28, and I invite all residents to watch and participate in that important meeting.”

West Lindsey District Council had help from Lincolnshire County Council for the clean-up operation. | Photo: WLDC

Ady Selby, Assistant Director of Operational & Commercial Services at West Lindsey District Council, said: “It’s great to see our teams working collaboratively with other councils to improve the environment; the bypass looked fantastic when the grass was cut and the litter was taken away, I hope this work discourages people from dropping litter at the roadside.

“Our team left Gainsborough at 5.30pm and returned at just past midnight on Friday morning. This partnership working along this section of road happens twice a year and we are delighted to be involved in keeping the section neat and tidy for residents.”