Campaign to drive away litter louts

Councillor Alcock and Javid Iqbal at one of the cigarette and gum disposal bins in Yorkshire Street

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OLDHAMERS are being encouraged to support a national campaign to stop people throwing litter from their cars.

The Keep Britain Tidy campaign aims to deter motorists from dumping fast food containers, drink cartons and cigarette stubs out of their windows.

During the last clean up on the Oldham Way bypass a staggering 38 bags of litter were removed from the grass verges.

Councillor Mark Alcock, cabinet member for environment and infrastructure said: “Dropping litter out of cars is extremely anti-social. People should take their rubbish home and dispose of it correctly.

“It costs the council tax-payers of Oldham £3 million a year keeping our streets clean — money which could be far better spent in any number of areas of real and lasting benefit to citizens.”

The council is also committed to clamping down on louts littering the town centre with cigarette butts and chewing gum.

A total of 20 specialised bins have been installed in Yorkshire Street in response to people’s concerns over these types of rubbish.

Councillor Alcock added: “One of the impacts of the smoking ban has been an increase in smoking related litter and it is hoped that these new bins will help to prevent this along with our continued enforcement action.

“Chewing gum is also a significant cause of litter and is extremely expensive and time consuming to remove.”




Shaw centre to get a spruce up



SPARKLING clean and chewing gum free — that’s how the streets of Shaw will look after a £125,000 revamp.



Paved areas in the centre will be deep-cleaned to remove gum and the flags will then be re-sanded and treated with a magi-coat sealant.

Target areas include the length of Market Street, from High Street, into Milnrow Road to Travis Street, including all paved side roads, the newly-laid areas of Newtown Street, plus outside the children’s centre and around the war memorial.

There will also be improvements to Crompton Way with resurfacing work, new safety barriers and realigned guardrails.

The refurbishment work will be funded through an agreement with Asda — made when the Shaw branch was built — which pledged to pay £200,000 for district centre improvements and £112,000 for highway improvement works undertaken before 2012.

Councillor Rod Blyth, cabinet member for people and communities, said: “These works are designed to improve the environment of Shaw town centre and they demonstrate the value of such agreements.

“The deep-cleaning of the town centre will bring the area back to its best. The gateways into Shaw have long required improvement. These works are part of a wider range of improvements that have been developed in consultation with local traders and shoppers.

“To date that has also included better traffic and pedestrian signs, a new pedestrian crossing in High Street, the creation of short-stay parking spaces, a new seating area in Farrow Street, the pedestrianisation of Newtown Street, the installation of cycle stands plus the ‘Think Local…Shop Shaw’ campaign.”

Work is expected to start next month and will last for around four weeks.