MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Pick a day, pick an interstate, and you’ll find trash that needs to be picked up.
Marissa Sanders told WREG she sees it all of the time.
“Just about everyday,” said Sanders. “A lot of it, like bumpers and tires.”
Taster Garner echoed that sentiment.
“Tires, trash, bottles, plastic.”
WREG cameras caught some of the same, everything from tire parts on I-55 to a bumper at I-385 near Ridgeway.
Some of the debris sat for days and days.
In fact, WREG caught the bumper still in the same spot a week later.
While debris on the interstate may just seem like a nuisance or eyesore, it can be troublesome for the driver forced to dodge an item in the middle of the highway, or what happens to the motorist who needs to use the shoulder?
Sanders said it’s happened to her on a city street, so she can’t imagine the the same on the interstate.
“One car was coming behind me, I had to swerve, and we almost smacked each other.”
The News Channel 3 Investigators asked Garner if he’d ever thought about who is responsible for picking it.
“I can tell you who is responsible, the state,” he said.
Oddly enough, Garner works for the city — WREG just happened to run into him at a gas station — and he’s right, sort of.
Technically, maintenance does belong to the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
However, WREG learned TDOT contracts and pays Memphis to handle litter pickup and sweeping on interstates.
“Only thing I can say is, go to the city, to the Public Works Directors and see what he says,” Garner said.
WREG did; neither the city nor TDOT wanted to talk on camera, but they did explain how it should work.
Public Works has a total of three crews to handle litter pickup.
The contract calls for workers to pick up debris weekly. They go back out and pick up larger items, either on the road or in the median, before sweeping once a month.
Whatever the process, drivers said they just want it done right.
Officials from both TDOT and the City of Memphis said crews do their best during routine maintenance to catch everything.
However, they encourage citizens to call and report and litter or debris problems.
Littering Motorist 24 Hotline:
52 Clean (522-5326)
TDOT-Litter:
1-877-8-LITTER
