Author Topic: Littering driver  (Read 3934 times)

quixoticgeek

  • Mostly Harmless
Littering driver
« on: 14 February, 2019, 11:25:37 am »

Yesterday I was walking home from having dropped off a hire car. The door on a parked car just in front of me opened, a cigarette and an empty drinks bottle were dropped out and the door closed. I pick up the plastic bottle and bang on the window holding it up. The occupant looks at me confused. So I open the door, throw the bottle in, close the door, and walk off.

The occupant, and her 3 friends (note to self next time, count number of occupants in car), gets out and starts shouting at me the Dutch for "what the fuck!?". I just walk off, eventually she tries to get infront of me, I just say "please don't drop litter". At this she then gives me a shove.

A few minutes before these events, about 50m away, a Porsche Ceyenne has managed to hit a pedestrian. This is maybe 200m away from a hospital. The pedestrian has a broken leg, and by the time of my actions above, is already in A&E. But there remains 3 police cars, and a police forensics unit in attendance, along with their occupants.

One of these police officers notices the shouting from across the street. I've noticed the police, and am walking in their direction. The women from the car are still shouting at me. I cross the road to the police officer, explain what's going on. His response is simply "Would you like me to arrest her?" "No, but if you could go tell her to not litter in future please, that would be great". He crossed the road, had a chat to them, Then comes back to explain he has done so and check I'm ok. He makes no comment on my action. I give it a few minutes for the car occupants to be a good few hundred metres up the road before continuing my walk home.

Has anyone else ever done similar with littering car drivers? How did the occupants react?

J
--
Beer, bikes, and backpacking
http://b.42q.eu/

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #1 on: 14 February, 2019, 11:38:26 am »
A couple of times. Once on foot, the girl I accosted looked genuinely confused as to why someone would be upset that she had thrown an empty plastic bottle to the ground (in sight of several bins, i'll add).

Other times whilst on my bike, observing litter being thrown from cars in traffic. I prefer this method as it gives an option of a fast cowardly retreat.

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #2 on: 14 February, 2019, 11:52:51 am »
Yes, once after selecting my opportunity. They had been chucking stuff out of the car I was in front and saw what was happening in my mirrors. Did a 360 on a roundabout and followed the car. Approached occupants on foot was polite but firm. By the time I had finished the girl in the back was nearly in tears.

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #3 on: 14 February, 2019, 11:58:38 am »
A pedestrian next to me threw a cigarette butt on the pavement. Didn't even stub it out.
I said "Oi", kicked them on the leg and told them there is a £100 fine for dropping cig butts in the street.

It was my son.

 :facepalm:
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PaulF

  • "World's Scariest Barman"
  • It's only impossible if you stop to think about it
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #4 on: 14 February, 2019, 12:01:00 pm »
Hope you took the £100 from his pocket money :)

ian

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #5 on: 14 February, 2019, 12:41:40 pm »
I once, and rather majestically if I may say, scooped up a just-dropped detritus of friend chicken wrappings and carcasses and delivered it straight back into the driver's lap as he sat there.

I didn't hang around to be thanked and made a warp-speed escape into a direction he couldn't follow. There's brave and there's stupid.

The amount of rubbish and litter in this country astounds and saddens me. I've always found the Netherlands to be far cleaner. The standard MO for junk food seems to be to toss it out the window of your moving car. These people must have bins at home.

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #6 on: 14 February, 2019, 12:56:59 pm »
Haven't had the occasion yet, but any day now I expect to be hit by a full bag of rubbish thrown from a passing rusty white van. Last year town councils in the region fitted their rubbish trucks with weighing equipment and started invoicing by weight. The amount of rubbish at the roadside has gone up by a factor of ten.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #7 on: 14 February, 2019, 01:02:43 pm »

The amount of rubbish and litter in this country astounds and saddens me.

That's always been the case I suppose. I've looked at some archive photographs (with my
rose-tinted spectacles) to try and re-live bygone times of my childhood and am astounded
at the amout of litter seen in the pictures.

I wouldn't confront anyone for chucking litter in case it was a bloke who would threaten to
punch me, or a woman who would/could play on her gender and complain that I was harrassing her.  :(

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #8 on: 14 February, 2019, 01:03:44 pm »
I've had litter thrown at me for Being A Cyclist, if that counts?

I'm disinclined to handle sticky/greasy/smokery litter anyway, and certainly far too risk averse to consider posting it back if the opportunity presented itself.

Which isn't to say I don't find the amount of litter on the streets depressing.  Not so much in Birmingham with its perpetual bin strikes, but out in the lanes where you can't pass 50m of hedgerow without coming across McDonalds detritus, coffee cups, plastic bottles, nappies, neatly bagged dogpoos, etc.

I can understand not wanting smelly or leaky stuff in your car, but you should have thought about that before acquiring a McDonalds/baby/dog.

Mr Larrington

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Re: Littering driver
« Reply #9 on: 14 February, 2019, 01:55:08 pm »
A passenger cast a fag-butt out of the window of a car stopped at some traffic lights, which landed in the lap of my grate frend Hairy McSteve, also waiting for the lights on his Windcheetah.  He picked it and flicked it back through the window, bypassing the smoker and landing somewhere on the floor.  Much horn-blowing ensued when the lights changed, as both driver and passenger were grovelling in the footwells trying to stave off combustion instead of Maintaining Progress.
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ian

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #10 on: 14 February, 2019, 02:13:09 pm »
Most junk food like McDs is in a bag anyway, it wouldn't hurt to take it home and throw it in the bin. Every roadside around here has been liberally decorated and there seems no effort to clean it up. Most of it, I suppose, simply tossed out of passing cars. It seems that people can't take an empty soft drink bottle home.

If I were in charge of the world, I'd make the producers responsible for the collection of their litter – it's clearly labelled, after all. It's always the same crap – junk food wrappings, energy drink and cooking lager cans, confectionary wrappers etc. You almost never find discarded avocado skins and hummus packaging.

Most days I pick up two handsful of crap dropped by the schoolkids on their way to school. One day I might just start bagging it up and dropping it off in the school reception every month.

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #11 on: 14 February, 2019, 02:14:03 pm »
You almost never find discarded avocado skins and hummus packaging.

Moseley.

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #12 on: 14 February, 2019, 02:19:06 pm »
You can always tell when there's been a beat for deer or boar in this area by the little clusters of beer-cans every 30 yards along the roadside, where the hunters stood to stop the beasties creating a traffic hazard.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

Tim Hall

  • Victoria is my queen
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #13 on: 14 February, 2019, 02:26:51 pm »
Quixoticqueek, had you noticed that the police were nearby before you reunited the litter with its owner?  If so, did it affect your course of action?

I've done the picked up a fag end and put it back in the window thing too. Strangely enough, as I was in the UK, the offender was a Dutchman (going by the accent as he said "what the fuck?") and the car was a left hand drive.

I've also flagged down a van that had just used the turning circle atthe end of my street to (a) turn and (b) deposit misc fast food rubbish. They stopped, wound down the window whereupon and I told them "I think you've dropped this" and handed it back. The driver (female, mid 40s) looked suitably embarassed.


Tom wotsit, off of uk.rec.cycling, was riding past a car when a lit fag end came out of the window. The reflex was strong in this one and he batted it straight back through the window with his gloved hand. Fifteen love.


There are two ways you can get exercise out of a bicycle: you can
"overhaul" it, or you can ride it.  (Jerome K Jerome)

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #14 on: 14 February, 2019, 02:55:09 pm »
Tom wotsit, off of uk.rec.cycling, was riding past a car when a lit fag end came out of the window. The reflex was strong in this one and he batted it straight back through the window with his gloved hand. Fifteen love.

Lol that made my day  :thumbsup:
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hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #15 on: 14 February, 2019, 05:53:35 pm »
My partner was on his bike, stationary at a junction, early in 2005, when some car occupants dumped fast food detritus from a car passenger window.
David picked up said junk and deposited it back into offending car.
Occupants emerged, pushed him off bike, injuring his left, dominant wrist.
They also threw his bike over a fence, causing some damage.

David informed Police but after much hassle they said HE could face charges of damaging offender's property if he didn't drop the case!

ian

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #16 on: 14 February, 2019, 06:21:11 pm »
Litter does have a use, for instance, I like to decorate pavement-parked cars with it. Half-filled lager cans (it might be lager, it might be piss, though if it's Fosters or Stella, is there much of a difference) are best, since they can be placed to micturate steadily down the windscreen.

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #17 on: 14 February, 2019, 06:22:22 pm »
^
^
 That's seriously f*cked up  >:(

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #18 on: 14 February, 2019, 06:29:00 pm »
David informed Police but after much hassle they said HE could face charges of damaging offender's property if he didn't drop the case!
Did the offenders make a complaint about damaged property? Did David make a complaint about
his damaged bike?

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #19 on: 14 February, 2019, 06:38:28 pm »
During the summer months (remember summer?) I regulalrly litter-pick a section of canal towpath - and the greatest amount of crap is always a couple of hundred yards either side of a dual carriageway overbridge. Generally fast food waste, but a lot of till receipts, and sweet papers. The amount of fag-related litter, and plastic carrier bags, has dropped dramatically over the last couple of years.
It's a common observation in our group of volunteers that the more we clear litter, the less people - on the towpath - are inclined to drop it; if they don't see litter, they don't drop litter. I very much doubt this psychology works with car occupants.
Too many angry people - breathe & relax.

ian

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #20 on: 14 February, 2019, 06:59:17 pm »
Sadly not, it's immediate out-of-sight, out-of-mind and curiously car drivers don't seem to notice the other contributions.

That said, you tend not to notice litter when you're in the car, it's only when you walk (which few people do), that it really becomes visible. I always collect a few bottles and cans on the way to the station. You can plot the distance from the station and walking speed using the littering radius.

What I also don't understand is how people will get out of their car and step over litter that's clearly at the end of their driveway (and sometimes on it). It would take a second to scoop it up and drop it in the bin. I guess we just expect someone else to do it.

Re: Littering driver
« Reply #21 on: 14 February, 2019, 08:38:28 pm »
The consequences of returning litter to it's rightful owner is the plot of the (quite funny) Carl Hiaasen novel "Sick Puppy".
The sound of one pannier flapping

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #22 on: 14 February, 2019, 09:28:33 pm »
David informed Police but after much hassle they said HE could face charges of damaging offender's property if he didn't drop the case!
Did the offenders make a complaint about damaged property? Did David make a complaint about
his damaged bike?

David certainly complained about damage to self and bike.

Suspect cops really CnBA to deal with 'mere cyclist'.
Very unsatisfactory outcome in many ways.

I photographed his bruises.

He needed X-rays of his wrist and a clinic visit when it didn't settle.

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #23 on: 14 February, 2019, 09:31:41 pm »
I have returned a smouldering fag butt to the bonnet of the issuing white car, where it left an Ugly Brown Scorch Mark.

tonycollinet

  • No Longer a western province of Númenor
Re: Littering driver
« Reply #24 on: 14 February, 2019, 09:53:26 pm »
If I were in charge of the world, I'd make the producers responsible for the collection of their litter.....

If I were in charge of the laws of physics, I'd give every litterer a 1% chance of having all the litter dropped by the nearest 100 other litterers deposited in their bed while sleeping in it.

Depositiers of dog shit berries would have the same 1% chance of receiving the dog shit berries of the nearest 100 anti social dog emptiers.