Spring clean for North Devon link road

An annual litter pick has just begun on one of the districts’ busiest stretches of road, ready to welcome this year’s first wave of holidaymakers.

Each year North Devon Council spends three weeks in the run-up to Easter scouring a 34 mile stretch of the A361 between Bideford Bridge and Stonelands Cross, near Tiverton. And every year the amount of litter they collect increases.

Last year over 1,200 bags of rubbish were collected, the majority of which was fast-food packaging thought to have been thrown from moving cars or dumped in lay-bys.

Lead Member for Waste and Recycling Councillor Paul Yabsley says: "It’s shocking how much litter we collect from the link road each year. Not only is it lazy and disrespectful to local residents and wildlife, it creates a terrible impression for visitors – first impressions count and the link road is the gateway to North Devon for most tourists.

"There really is no excuse to throw litter from your car – take it home with you and put it in the bin or use one of the many wheelie bins that we provide in the laybys along the link road."

This is the fifth year that the council has carried out a litter blitz on the link road, in conjunction with South West Highways. In addition, litter is picked up regularly from laybys throughout the year.

Traffic flow will not be affected but motorists are asked to give space to the cleaning crew, slow down and pass with caution.