COUNCILLORS are calling for help to clear litter and dumping at A12 junctions.

Green councillor James Abbott, of the Silver End and Cressing Ward, has previously asked for help to be sanctioned from Braintree Council.

He is targeting the junctions on the boundary between Rivenhall and Witham.

He said: “We appreciate that it is not the fault of local councils that the litter and dumping is taking place, but they do have the responsibility of clearing it.

“We fully support the efforts of the council to crack down on the actions of people who act in selfish and environmentally irresponsible ways by throwing litter from vehicles and dumping waste.

“But we are also renewing our request for some work to be done in the area of the boundary of Rivenhall and Witham along the A12 southbound and at the Colemans Bridge and Eastways junctions.”

Bob Wright, another Green councillor for the ward, said: “The large amounts of litter, dumping and abandoned signs look very unsightly and it is a very poor advert for the area.

“Some of the areas along the A12 we are concerned about have safety issues being close to fast moving traffic, and it will need a co-ordinated plan to do the cleaning.”

Braintree Council environment boss Wendy Schmitt said: “We take littering of any kind very seriously and the council has a zero tolerance approach.

“In 2017, Braintree District Council and National Highways signed a litter strategy involving a joint partnership approach to tackling litter and more recently introduced twice yearly meetings to discuss maintenance issues in relation to the A120 and A12.

“We are due to meet again in early February and will consider further ideas as to how we can work better in collaboration with them on keeping these two roads clean and tidy.

“We will of course look into arranging a litter pick, however, in these particular areas, traffic management will need to be included to ensure the safety of our staff and road users and will take time to arrange.

“We would urge everyone who sees anyone throwing litter from a vehicle in our district, to report them to us and our street scene enforcement team will follow it up.

“Last year, we issued 48 fixed penalty notices to littering offenders across our district.”