Ten bags of litter were collected on every mile of the A303 following a recent clean-up operation.

Figures published by South Somerset District reveal the scale of the district’s roadside waste problem, with more than 100 bags of rubbish being collected around Crewkerne, Chard and Ilminster in the last three months.

The council has said that the general picture is improving, with the number of fly-tipping incidents continuing to fall across the district.

But more work remains to be done, with the council yet to clean the A303’s central reservation or the “miles and miles” of B-roads across the area.

Chris Cooper, the council’s environmental services manager, updated members of the area west committee of progress being made at a meeting in Chard on Wednesday evening (May 16).

He said: “We have also just finished cleaning the verges of the A303.

“On analysis of the material collected, we find that we are on average collecting ten black bin bags of litter [for] each mile of verge, with 40 per cent of the waste being plastics, 30 per cent paper, ten per cent cans, 15 per cent miscellaneous debris and five per cent being car parts,  based on the volume of waste.”

Mr Cooper’s team covered a total distance of 60 miles, cleaning the entire stretch of the road through south Somerset – meaning that around 600 bags of rubbish were collected at the roadside.

The following main roads also produced a total of 112 bags of rubbish over a three-month period:

  • A358 Southfields roundabout to Donyatt – 7 bags (February 14)
  • A30 Cricket St Thomas to Grove Pitts – 30 bags (February 19)
  • A30 Grove Pitts to Chard – 15 bags (February 20) Kingstone Hill (Donyatt to Ilminster) – 26 bags (March 13)
  • B3169 Crewkerne to Clapton – 26 bags (April 5)
  • A30 Chard to Devon border – 31 bags (April 16)
  • A30 Yeovil to East Chinnock – 3 bags (April 16)

Mr Cooper said that his team was currently looking at how to best clear rubbish from the central reservation of the A303 without seriously disrupting the flow of traffic.

He said: “We are working with Highways England to identify a work method that we can follow with confidence and could become ‘standard practice’ for other authorities carrying out similar duties. We  expect to hear from them with their suggestions very soon.”

Mr Cooper’s team has been trying to reduce roadside waste by providing extra bins where requested and sweeping the roads at night – which Mr Cooper claims is safer for residents.

The number of recorded fly-tips across the district has fallen to 940 over the last 12 months, compared to 1,108 for the previous period.

In area west, the rate has also fallen over the same time-frame, from 264 tips to 208.

Mr Cooper said: “My next step is the many B-roads – there are miles and miles of them.

“We are hoping to co-ordinate our efforts with voluntary groups to clear litter from the public rights of way.”