Litter found on 99% of main roads in Wales

Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council is urging motorists to ‘drive your litter home’ as new data reveals that litter is present on nearly every main road in Wales.

Surveys carried out by Keep Wales Tidy found litter on 98.8% of A and B roads, with smoking litter – mainly cigarette butts – present on 88.1% of main roads.

The data also highlights the environmental impact of ‘on-the-go’ food and drink, with sweet wrappers, drinks containers and fast-food packaging among the most common types of litter along our roadsides.

Surveys carried out between April and December 2025 reveal:

• Confectionary (sweets and chocolate) packaging was present on 80.7% of main roads.
• Drinks litter was present on 72.1% of main roads.
• Fast-food litter was present on 67% of main roads.

MTCBC is supporting Keep Wales Tidy’s Welsh Government-funded ‘Drive Your Litter home’ campaign to raise awareness of the far-reaching impacts of roadside litter – an issue which threatens wildlife, pollutes waterways, and is both dangerous and expensive to clean up.

Keep Wales Tidy Chief Executive Owen Derbyshire said:

“Loving Wales is basically in my job description, but even I feel embarrassed by the state of our roadsides. There is simply no excuse for throwing litter from a vehicle. It is lazy, unnecessary, and completely avoidable.”

He continued:

“Roadside litter is not a new problem, but this latest data shows just how widespread it has become. Every motorist needs to take responsibility. Litter in your vehicle belongs to you. Drive it home and dispose of it properly.”

To find out more about Keep Wales Tidy’s roadside litter campaign, visit: www.keepwalestidy.cymru