Written question asked by Lord Marlesford (Conservative), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Adonis (Labour) on Wednesday, 3 February 2010.

Roads: Litter

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the annual cost of litter picking on the roads for which the Highways Agency is responsible.

Answer: Section 89 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 places a duty on the Highways Agency to remove litter from motorways in England. Responsibility for removing litter from the all-purpose trunk road network, with the exception of roads managed by a design, build, finance operate company lies with local authorities. Litter collection on motorways is one of the numerous duties carried out as part of the Highway’s Agency’s routine maintenance function and costs for individual activities are not recorded separately. It is therefore not possible to provide costs for litter collection.

Secondary information