Connect Plus Services, the Highways Agency’s M25 contractor 14th March 2013

“ We carry out fortnightly inspections of the carriageway.  Our inspections are based on the criteria provided by the Environmental Protection Act that scores amounts of litter from A to D. The Code of Practice contained in the Act states that category C should be cleared within 28 days and category D within 7 days. Categories A and B are not dealt with as priority and will be reassessed on the next inspection”  (My underlining)

The Litter Codes last resource response times are specified for each category of land and do not depend on how littered it is.

Also, the code is not contained in the Act. It is referred to in the Act and is merely a consideration for duty bodies. It is not mandatory.

If they inspect every 14 days and then take up to 28 days to clean an area that is sub standard then that means that they could take up to 6 weeks to clean up any given piece of litter.

“The M25 and A30 are high speed Trunk roads and our workforce require a lane closure next to the verge to protect them from traffic while they carry out the work”.

Then why have I seen  contractors  litter picking verges both on the M25 and other motorways (albeit a rare sight)  without lane closures –  relying on a standard truck (not even a blocking vehicle)  moving along the hard shoulder in tandem with a operative carrying out the actual picking?

 

 

Peter Silverman
28th March 2013