Rock Quarry Road might be designated as a scenic road, but the City of Columbia is concerned about one of its unsightly qualities: a large build-up of trash.
The Columbia Office of Neighborhood Services is hosting a volunteer cleanup of Rock Quarry Road this Saturday.
The city has fielded many complaints about litter on the road, prompting them to organize the event.
Approximately 11,000 drivers use Rock Quarry Road per day, many of them students commuting from the many student housing complexes located in south Columbia.
However, Neighborhood Services Volunteer Program Specialist Jody Cook says this problem cannot be blamed on students alone.
“I know, because we live in a college town there’s often the misconception that only college students litter. Unfortunately, you know, that’s just not true. Litter and people just being very careless goes across all types of populations,” Cook said.
This is not the first time the office has prompted a cleanup.
Neighborhood Services Manager Leigh Kottwitz says she hopes events like these create a culture sensible of waste removal.
“Gosh, we as a society and as residents of Columbia need to be more careful that we’re not littering our community and each taking our own responsibility for that,” Kottwitz said.
Rock Quarry Road is a narrow, winding road, making it difficult for volunteers to safely remove trash along the street.
Neighborhood Services will not be closing the road during the cleanup, but traffic will be restricted to one lane.
The Rock Quarry Road Cleanup volunteers will be meeting at 7:15 Saturday morning in Capen Park.