Colchester has joined local authorities and fast-food restaurants across Essex to fight the continuing scourge of people throwing litter out of vehicles.
This year’s Love Essex campaign is reminding people what roads should be used for with the slogan It’s for driving on, not littering on and highlighting the consequences offenders caught littering will face – either a £150 fixed penalty notice or a fine up to £2,500 plus costs upon conviction in a court.
Local fast-food outlets are also supporting the campaign by displaying banners at 23 KFC and 25 McDonald’s drive-through restaurants, with the message It’s a takeaway, not a throwaway, as well as distributing stickers on packaging and inside restaurants.
Colchester Borough Council is funding campaign messages on petrol pumps at Tesco in Greenstead Road and on the rear of local buses, to remind people not to throw litter from vehicles.
The council’s Street Care & Safety team will also be monitoring the area around the Northern Gateway, over the coming weeks, to gauge the effectiveness of the campaign.
Keeping Essex clean and tidy costs the taxpayer over £17.5 million a year and with ever-decreasing local authority budgets, the demand and pressure put on providing services such as street cleansing continues to rise.
To drive the message home, a humorous video has been produced to highlight the consequences. You can watch it on YouTube at loveessex.org/litter-video.
Cllr Martin Goss, Portfolio Holder Neighbourhood Services & Waste, said: “One of our key priorities is to keep Colchester clean and an attractive place to live and visit.
“The vast majority of people work with us and dispose of their litter responsibly. However, if people insist on throwing their litter from vehicles or in the streets then we will act.
“The message is quite simple and ought to be clear by now: Please take your litter home with you or dispose of it responsibly. It really isn’t worth the risk of being fined for throwing it in the street.”
Claire Owen, Director People and Culture at KFC, said: “Our KFC restaurants are proud to be a part of this campaign. We Love Essex and that’s why we’re reminding our customers that it’s a takeaway, not a throwaway. That’s why you’ll see our teams out litter-picking too – doing our bit to keep our streets clean.”
Sam Reid, Brand Manager at PJT Restaurant’s Ltd, added: “When it comes to takeaway food and eating on the go, our McDonald’s restaurants are extremely keen to endorse the message that litter should be disposed of responsibly. Being a part of Love Essex campaign, together we can help spread the message.”
Love Essex anti-littering campaigns are run by the Cleaner Essex Group, consisting of local authorities across the county, Essex County Council and local businesses partners, including KFC and McDonald’s. To find out more about Love Essex and this campaign, visit loveessex.org/littering
Page last reviewed: 19 August 2022