Madonna saw a light of controversy beam down on her when she adopted 1-year-old David Banda of Malawi. Meg Ryan adopted her daughter, Daisy, from China. Perhaps the most famous of celebrity couples, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, have adopted children from Cambodia, Ethiopia and Vietnam. Though these high-profile overseas adoptions are good fodder for the tabloids, there are other adoptions that are far less controversial and are meaningful in their own right, but you won’t see many celebrities pursuing these.
No, this isn’t about adopting children but adopting a highway. Highways are much closer than the celebrity destinations for adoption, and as they grow into their teen years the ulcers caused by stress might not be as severe.
History
Adopt-A-Highway programs had their start in 1984 when James “Bobby” Evans, an engineer for the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) Tyler District was driving through Tyler and observed debris blowing out of the bed of the pickup truck he was following. Brenda Flores-Dollar, program manager for TxDOT, says, “Alarmed by the incident and concerned that the cost of picking up litter was increasing at an annual rate of 15-20 percent, Evans began appealing to local groups to ‘adopt’ a section of highway.” Unfortunately, there wasn’t much interest at that point.
However, Billy Black, the public information officer for TxDOT’s Tyler District, became involved in developing the Adopt-A-Highway program. “Black was responsible for not only creating a quarterly cleanup cycle for adopting organizations, but also for implementing the initial concept, which included furnishing volunteer safety training, reflective vests and equipment and for erecting the well-known Adopt-A-Highway signs that recognize adopters,” explains Flores-Dollar.
The Tyler Civitan Club soon became the first group to volunteer, adopting a two-mile stretch of Highway 69. “The rest, as they say, is history. Within months, more than 50 groups in the region, garden clubs and scouting groups among them, had joined the program, which would blanket Texas and quickly spread nationwide,” says Flores-Dollar. Signs recognizing the Tyler Civitans’ section of roadway were erected on March 9, 1985 – a day that was subsequently named International Adopt-A-Highway Day.
The Rest of the Story
Since the 1980s, the Adopt-A-Highway program has been implemented nationally and internationally. The expansion of the program has been phenomenal. For example, Texas currently has almost 4,000 groups that generally adopt two miles of highway. “Groups are required to go out a minimum of four times a year to pick up litter on their adopted stretches of roadway,” says Flores-Dollar. Other states have seen similar growth in their programs.
Wisconsin DOT managers, who became aware of the TxDOT program in the early 1990s, decided the program would be of great benefit to their state as well. Richard Moss, Wisconsin DOT spokesman, says, “We have about 5,900 miles of state highways that have been adopted.” Based on the information available in their database, Moss indicates that 25,314 large plastic bags of trash were collected in 2007. That’s not all, though: “The groups also collected 2,726 bags of recyclables in 2007,” adds Moss.
Texas is witnessing a great deal of trash being collected by its volunteers as well. “The typical volunteer may pick up two to four bags (or more) of trash,” explains Flores-Dollar. Texas also has an annual pickup period, and in 2008 this was held from April 5-14. During this period, 14,438 volunteers collected 24,886 bags of litter, which, according to Flores-Dollar, amounts to approximately 311,075 pounds of trash. Imagine that – 156 tons of trash was picked up along Texas highways during that brief period.
As with celebrity adoptions, questions often arise about the program. One such question is that of funding – even though these programs are volunteer-based there are costs associated with them. What are those costs and how are the programs funded?
In Wisconsin, the program cost $88,000 in 2007. “All funding was state general purpose revenue,” says Moss. The information is less specific from Texas, with Dollar-Flores emphasizing the fact that this is a volunteer program. “The Adopt-A-Highway program does not have a budget as it’s strictly a volunteer program. Materials for the program are materials that are generally used in the maintenance area of litter prevention,” she explains. Expenses related to the programs include those for safety vests, trash bags, signage and safety training.
Going Local
The popularity and effectiveness of the state-run Adopt-A-Highway programs has led to the implementation of similar programs at the local government levels. In Clackamas County, Wash., the program was developed as the result of a vacation trip. Terry Ellison, Clackamas County’s traffic manager, says, “In 1993, our roads manager saw an Adopt-A-Highway program in Arizona while on vacation. He thought it would be good to implement such a program in Clackamas County.” To date, 375 miles of county road have been adopted, resulting in 55-60 tons of trash collection annually.
Some localities have been encouraged by local citizens to implement the program. Kris Ottoson, spokeswoman for the Lafayette, Colo., Public Works Department, explains, “We began the Adopt-A-Road program in response to interest expressed by local organizations.” The Lafayette program was implemented just this year. Currently the area has three groups involved in the program and the results are pleasing. “They do a fantastic job. Together they have adopted approximately three miles of roadway and have anywhere from two to 10 people going out on each cleanup,” says Ottoson.
King County in Washington state implemented the Adopt-A-Road program in 1991 to address roadside litter on unincorporated county roads. Ruth Harvey, spokeswoman for the King County Department of Transportation, explains, “Volunteers typically adopt a two-mile stretch of road for a minimum of two years. They are responsible for performing cleanups on their adopted road at least twice a year. This program allows community members to contribute to the beautification of King County and improve environmental quality.” Approximately 225 individuals and groups and 400 miles of road are currently adopted. “In a typical year, our volunteers collect well over 5,000 bags of litter, plus numerous other debris that cannot be bagged, like tires, wood and metal scraps, and other types of junk,” says Harvey.
For local governments, covering the costs of any new program can be a challenge, but the Adopt-A-Road programs see solid support. “It costs roughly $150-$200 per volunteer group annually to administer the program, recruit and coordinate volunteers, provide safety equipment and supplies, etc. The cost is covered by our agency’s existing budget, as are the pickup of trash bags and placement of volunteer recognition signs,” explains Harvey.
Ottoson says the costs are minimal, so that is not a factor in the continuation of the program. “We supply custom signs to mark the territory of the participating organizations.We supply the trash and recycling bags, safety vests, and pick up the trash and recycling after the event,” she says.
An Interesting Twist
While most communities and states use volunteers to work their Adopt-A-Highway programs, there are alternatives. Kevin Bevelhimer, Adopt-A-Road coordinator for Kitsap County (Wash.) Public Works, discusses their program and use of inmates as well as volunteers. Bevelhimer explains, “Our Inmate Litter Crew collects litter twice each year from 107 principle arterial county roads. The inmate crew does not collect litter on smaller roads in neighborhoods. Adopt-A-Road volunteers help out by picking up litter in their neighborhoods.”
According to Bevelhimer, the inmate crew does an excellent job keeping the principle arterials litter-free and the adopted roads are visibly cleaner than roads that have not been adopted. “The volunteer who has adopted a road takes great pride in his or her accomplishments. I have had a few volunteers tell me that [passers-by] sometimes holler out a ‘Thanks,’ or have even brought them a refreshment or two,” chuckles Bevelhimer.
The Trash
Regardless of where or how the programs are implemented, one thing remains constant – the trash. For whatever reason, a few in the motoring public (cars and trucks alike) seem to think it is acceptable to throw trash out the window and onto the roadways. What type of trash is found? “Along with the usual and sundry items, such as pop and beer cans, fast-food wrappers, cigarette butts and tires, Adopt-A-Road volunteers also have found televisions, bikes, refrigerators, mattresses and bed frames, an entire living room furniture set, an old RV trailer and a large plastic Santa,” says Harvey.
There are, at times, rewards to picking up trash. “A few years ago we had an individual find a $100 bill on the shoulder. They walked another few feet down the road and found a $50 bill. I guess one man’s trash is another man’s gold,” laughs Ellison. In Texas – beyond the cell phones, harmonicas, clothing, CDs, photos, wallets, money, pillows, junked computers, gloves, running boards off of pickups, tools, bumpers off of small cars, driver licenses, food wrappers, bottles, cans, cups and cigarette butts – one volunteer had quite the surprise. “One person found a phone that was stolen out of their house several months prior to litter pickup,” says Flores-Dollar.
Unfortunately, there is one item commonly found during pickups that the trucking industry is infamous for – the “trucker bomb.” Bevelhimer says this is the worst litter item found that is attributed to truck drivers. “This is a bottle that has been used as a portable urinal and then thrown from the vehicle,” he explains.
The Motivation
Regardless of whom you ask or where the program is, the motivation for volunteers to be involved in the Adopt-A-Highway programs is similar. Frequently, groups, families or individuals see a need in their community or state for litter control and want to help keep their neighborhood or state looking clean. Harvey adds, “Several of our volunteers are environmental advocates and wish to participate in the program as a tangible way to effect change. Other groups, especially youth groups, are looking for an ongoing community service project.”
Recognition and publicity are other reasons. “Since volunteer-recognition signs are placed on each end of an adopted route identifying the group keeping the road clean, many organizations and businesses figure this is a great way to get publicity,” says Harvey. Regardless of the reasons, the results have been positive for the vast majority of the programs.
Parting Words
Those running the Adopt-A-Highway programs recognize that professional truck drivers are among the most responsible travelers on the highway. But like any group, the trucking industry does have those with no regard for the environment. However unfortunate this may be, it is important that the true professionals continue to act as such.
Dollar-Flores offers some common-sense advice. “Keep your loads covered to eliminate the process of ‘fly away’ litter from truck beds. Always keep your litter contained and/or keep a litter bag in your vehicle and throw away trash at stops,” suggests Dollar-Flores.
Safety is also an important concern. “Truckers, and all motorists, should treat the volunteers with the same respect that they give to construction and maintenance workers. We tell our participants to work in the shoulder area and to keep off the pavement for maximum safety. We do not allow children under the age of 16 to participate, and cleanups are only allowed during daylight hours,” says Ottoson.
Adopt-A-Highway programs, though not receiving the publicity of the celebrity adoptions, have been an effective tool in combating litter along the roadways of America. Truckers, above all, should take pride in the cleanliness of the highways and do their part to maintain this cleanliness. No more trucker bombs, please!
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