Q: I was driving down the street that leads to my neighborhood this week, and I saw the driver of the pickup in front of me throw an entire drive-through bag out the window. What should I have done? Can I call the police on them?
A: This is one of my biggest pet peeves. I always try to imagine what that person's home must look like with the lack of pride they demonstrate. I picture something like what you see on that show Hoarders: Buried Alive.
Litterbugs SUCK!
The worst case of this I ever saw was in Trinity Park when a couple at a picnic table with an immense spread of Chinese food just got up and got in their car and drove away. They left every last container, napkin, plastic utensil and cup on the table. It was disgusting. I was with my daughter, and we went over to throw it away while I took the opportunity to give my daughter a little lesson about respecting our environment.
According to the Texas Department of Transportation's Report a Litterer Program, when you see litter exit a vehicle, intentionally or accidentally, write down the following information:
- Texas license plate number (Texas plates only)
- Make of vehicle
- Time of day
- Location
- Date
- Who tossed (driver, passenger or accidental)
- What was tossed
TxDOT compares the information to our vehicle registration database and when an exact match is located, we send the litterer a Don't Mess with Texas litterbag along with a letter reminding them to keep their trash off of our roads. And you can feel good about doing something to clean up our beloved Lone Star State.
Littering is against the law and you can be fined up to $500. Repeat the offense, and you could face a fine of up to $2,000 and 180 days in jail.
Discarding trash that weighs more than five pounds is considered illegal dumping and carries even steeper fines. In Texas, failing to cover your pickup-truck load is against the law and carries a fine of up to $200 for the first offense and $500 for repeat offenders.
Don't Mess With Texas!
Litterbugs, do you really want your surroundings to look like this?
