Caltrans promises cleanup of Highway 87 will happen soon

Q

I am aghast about how much litter has accumulated on Highway 87.

This is much worse than other freeways in the Bay Area.

Why has the state allowed litter on 87 to get so bad? When does the state plan to clean up this large mess? … There are tires and furniture along 87 that pose a hazard for anyone making an emergency stop or for emergency vehicles using the side of the road. When it will be cleaned up? —SteveBrock,TomOsaki

and others

A

Roadshow plea has gone in to clean up 87 and I expect this to occur soon.

This mess is dangerous and frustrating. Despite the pandemic, Caltrans collected 270,000 cubic yards of trash statewide last year — enough to fill 18,000 garbage trucks. The state will remove an additional 1.2 million cubic yards, or 21,000 tons, of trash as part of a threeyear, $1.5 billion effort to remove litter across our 58 counties. This is the equivalent of filling the Rose Bowl three times, or filling enough garbage bags to stretch from Los Angeles to New York City.

Q

The real cause ofthelitter problem that plagues our highways is trash falling out of trucks, especially garbage trucks.

I almost never witness anyone throwing litter out of a car but on numerous occasions I’ve seen litter literally pouring out of trucks.

— Tom Watts,

San Jose

A

Me, too.

Trucks are one of the three main sources of all that trash, including garbage and recycling trucks, and pickups with no tarps covering their beds. In addition, people pitch fast food items and other junk out the window.

Q

Gary, you are spot on about the high cost of renting cars, like the woman who faces a $1,200 fee for a one-week rental in Maui.

Remember that new car sales are way down due to the microchip shortage so rental companies are slow to sell their inventory. I have heard that there have been up to sixhour waits for your car once you land and try to pick it up.

Yikes!

—D.Daves

A

Six-hour waits! Yikes, indeed.

Q

We just returned from Maui.

A lot of people were on the island but there appear be plenty of rental cars.

We rented a full-sized car several months ago for $431 for nine days from Budget through Costco. Probably before the big crush. The main rental center parking lot at the airport was full of cars as we arrived. — Steve Lathrop

A

Steve, I hope that good news holds for other travelers.

Join Gary Richards for an hourlong chat noon Wednesday at www.mercurynews. com/live-chats. Look for Gary Richards at Facebook.com/ mr.roadshow, or contact him at mrroadshow@ bayareanewsgroup. com or 408-9205335. Contact Gary Richards at grichards@ bayareanewsgroup.com or 408-920-5037.