WATCH OUT FOR ORANGE-VESTED ADOPT-A-HIGHWAY VOLUNTEERS
Many will participate in statewide litter pickup April 12

Weather permitting, on Saturday, April 12, you’ll see more volunteers than usual as they clean litter from their adopted roadsides during the annual statewide spring cleanup day.

To help ensure the volunteers’ safety, motorists should look out for large orange “Cleanup Crew Working” signs and drive cautiously as they pass volunteers wearing bright orange vests and carrying bright orange bags.

The Virginia Department of Transportation’s (VDOT’s) Adopt-a-Highway program involves volunteers in nearly 11,000 groups, who agree to clean up their adopted stretch of road at least four times a year for two years.

Participants are particularly encouraged to carry out one of their four pickups during the annual spring event to spruce up the commonwealth for Historic Garden Week (April 19-27 this year).

About 20,000 miles, or more than one quarter of Virginia’s state roads, have been adopted by volunteers, who annually provide the equivalent of approximately $3 million in litter control services to the commonwealth.

The Adopt-a-Highway program started in Texas in 1985 and has helped generate related programs such as Adopt-a-Spot, Adopt-a-Street, Adopt-a-Stream and Assign-a-Highway.

VDOT’s Adopt-a-Highway program began 20 years ago, and it is one of the largest in the country.

For more information, go to the Adopt-a-Highway pages of VirginiaDOT.org or call (800) PRIDE-VA [(800) 774-3382].

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