A major road in Swansea is having to be closed to the public one day this week because "litter louts" have covered the verges in so much rubbish. Swansea Council has confirmed that drivers hoping to travel via a number of main roads and dual carriageways around the city are likely to be disappointed in the coming weeks, as council officers are forced to close the roads so highways teams can clear litter carelessly thrown on the ground, often out of car windows.
Firstly, highways teams are set to clear litter on the A484 between Garngoch and Cadle this Sunday, February 19 - so the road will be closed throughout the day - with teams set to tackle other roads and carriageways in the city in the coming weeks.
Council cabinet member for community services, Cyril Anderson, explained: "If people didn't litter our roads and dual carriageways by throwing it out of car windows or fly-tipping on verges, there would be no need to clear the waste. But we have to take action, not just because it's unsightly but also because some of it’s a potential risk to wildlife which inhabit many of our roadside verges.
"Clearing litter from these areas is a labour-intensive job because we have to make arrangements to close roads or cone-off lanes on dual carriageways so our staff are protected while they carry out the work." You can get the biggest Swansea news stories straight to your inbox with our newsletter.
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Fellow cabinet member for environment and infrastructure, Cllr Andrew Stevens, added: "We apologise in advance for any inconvenience, but the blame really lies with the people who think there's no consequences for thoughtlessly dumping their litter. Ultimately, the time and expense our highways teams are taking to do this work is necessary because some people think it is OK to litter their roads and communities. People should simply stop doing it.
"If you see someone littering or fly-tipping in our communities, please report it to us."
A spokesperson for Swansea Council added that work had already been done to clear litter from the A484 between Loughor and Garngoch and after this weekend's work clearing the A484 between Garngoch and Cadle, the next step would be to do the same on the A483 section from Cadle to Penllergaer.
Following on from that, there will be work on the A4067 Ynysforgan to Cwm Level with further activity in the weeks after.
If you want to report a litter problem on a major road or dual carriageway you can email highways@swansea.gov.uk, and you can report a litter problem in a street online here. If you spot someone littering or fly-tipping anywhere in Swansea, you can report it to Swansea Council here.
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