A load of rubbish! Drive-by garbage bins on UK highways

The UK has launched bright orange funnel-shaped garbage bins to allow drivers to throw rubbish directly out of their car windows, in an effort to keep the country's highways clean.
In the opening phase, the bins are being introduced at 25 service areas in the northwest of the country, with the first ones appearing on the M6 at Lymm, Cheshire.
The new bins are designed so drivers do not need to leave their vehicles and prevent them littering the roads on the move.
An initial 10-week trial on the M3 motorway at Winchester in southern England last year showed a 25 per cent reduction in litter on the ground within the service area, according to government body Highways England.

"The funnel bins make it easier for drivers to dispose of their litter responsibly without the need to get out of their vehicles," a spokesperson for the authority said.
It said more than 40,000 sacks of litter were collected from motorways in the Northwest last year, an average of 108 sacks for every mile of motorway.

"Every year we remove 200,000 sacks of litter from our motorways, at the cost of around 40 pounds a sack - the equivalent of fixing a pothole. Since January 2017, we have also focused resources on a more rapid clean-up at 25 litter hotspots," Highways England said.

"Picking litter close to fast-moving traffic puts our workers at risk. It is also unsightly as well as a risk to wildlife and the environment, so we urge road users to take their litter home," it added.
'Clean Up Britain' founder John Read, however, criticised the new funnel bins, designed in two heights so that they come up to window-height for most vehicles, as a low-cost gimmick.
"This appears like a low-cost gimmick to try and pretend that Highways England is doing something about the massive problem of litter on motorways. Highways England just needs to do its job properly, and keep the entire motorway network clear of litter, not just 25 so-called 'hotspots'. The reality is that virtually the entire network is a litter hotspot," he said.