It was nice of Jim to write a note of thanks re: highway cleanup (April 14 RMO).
Although we do it as a civic duty and not for the thanks, it is always nice when we get an occasional acknowledgement honk on the horn from passing motorists. Also it is good exercise, fresh air and sunshine, and the scenery along our stretch of road is awesome.
He is correct on the amount of garbage that we collect, averaging over 125 bags a year, and certainly the about 25 used pampers a year is no thrill.
The number one piece of garbage in our section is coffee cups, with Tim Hortons leading the way (more Tim cups than everyone else put together). Apparently whatever gene causes you to like a double-double also causes you to throw all your empties out the window.
What really appalls us though, is the number of alcohol containers we find. Over 300 per year for our three-kilometer stretch of the Trans-Canada. If this is a representative average, then that means over 10,000 just between Calgary and Canmore.
Although beer cans are the most common, there is also a varied selection of hard liquor, white wine and rosé, coolers and various liqueurs. While we admit that it is circumstantial evidence only, this would seem to indicate that it is all ages, both sexes, doing the drinking on our highways.
Maybe this is a contributing factor for the 8-10 accident sites we tidy up (headlights, mirrors, grille pieces, etc.) every year (Volker-Steven gets the big pieces).
Perchance a couple of drinks has caused these people to not recognize the dangers of the road getting slippery, or it has slowed their reaction time.
So ... while we would appreciate less dirty diapers and a lot less Tim’s garbage, what we would really like is for people to stop drinking and driving before they injure/kill themselves/others on the road.
Alan and Burke,
Canmore
