Managing Litter on the A82

Bin being installed at a layby near Luss on the A82

If you’ve been driving along the A82 recently you may have noticed the absence of litter on the verges between Arden and Tarbet.

 Things were a lot different a couple of years ago. Then the verges and laybys were in a dreadful state with litter and fly tipping which had built up over years of neglect by the authorities. I know that because, in my role as Vice Chair of The Friends of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs, I was out there regularly monitoring the mess in preparation for the introduction of the charity’s “Adopt a Bonnie Banks Bins” initiative, part of a scheme to improve visitor management during the period following the COVID lockdown .  

 The Friends, a voluntary body which seeks to preserve, protect and provide for nature and people in and around the National Park, sometimes finds itself stepping in where the statutory bodies are manifestly failing to cope.  This time, applying the ”Nudge” approach, we set about making it easy for people to do “the right thing” with their litter. We installed 20 bins in selected laybys (often near popular picnic and  camping sites), organised a series of Make a Difference “MAD” litter clearance days for volunteers and did what we could to help and encourage some of the key agencies to work together more effectively. Ironically, when we were making our case to officials, one scoffed at the proposal saying the bins would, “Only attract litter”. Our faith that the public would respond was vindicated. Indeed the bins have attract litter and the road verges and laybys are looking so much the better for it. We haven’t solved all the problems, but this will be our third year of operating a scheme which has transformed the litter and fly tipping situation along the busy Loch Lomondside A82 corridor which is the main gateway to Argyll and Bute and The West Highlands.

 As a small charity, we couldn’t possibly have done it all on our own.  Members of the local business community, Transport Scotland, BEAR, The Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, volunteer members of the public and Argyll and Bute Council and their helpful Community Service Team, have all contributed, all of them going the extra mile giving time, effort and/or money to keep Loch Lomond’s A82 road verges and laybys looking their best. Thankyou all!

 Costs are rising and this year it has been necessary for the Friends to assemble a funding package of £30,000 to service the bins. The questions arise, “How long can or should a small charity keep doing what is clearly a job for public agencies, as has been the case for many years now along other stretches of the A82 and the A9, where Councils provide and regularly empty bins in laybys?”

John Urquhart 

Vice Chair

Friends of Loch Lomond and the Trossachs

64B Colquhoun St

Helensburgh G849JP