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It is a most unpleasant subject, but one that needs to be addressed.
It seems there has been a significant increase along our state's highways of litter in the form of what UDOT officials call "trucker bombs." They are bottles or zip-loc bags of urine and feces that get flagrantly tossed from vehicles by thoughtless motorists, including long-haul truckers.
How bad is the problem? UDOT maintenance crews reportedly pick up over 20,000 such items a year from the state's roads. And the number is growing. For crews in Parley's Canyon, for example, it's a constant battle:
"Right now we've only gone about a week between cleaning up and it's already piling up." (Nile Easton, UDOT Spokesman)
The public outcry over this crude practice ought to ring loud and long. If truckers are the main culprits, as suggested, then their industry must take steps to see that the uncouth trend is stopped! Any attempt by trucking industry executives to justify or explain away what is happening rings insufferably hollow. It is nothing less than a black eye that perpetuates unfortunate stereotypes about those who drive big rigs.
So, although it is a most unpleasant subject, it cannot be ignored. It is public littering in its coarsest form and it must be stopped.
