THE cost of clearing up after motoring litterbugs on the trunk roads and dual carriageways of the New Forest has soared to £1,000 a week.

Members of New Forest District Council's cabinet have had to agree to find an extra £27,000 to meet new safety requirements which mean the area's biggest dual carriageway - 16 kilometres of the A31 from Cadnam to Ringwood - has to be cleared at night.

That pushes the overall total for the current financial year up to a projected £57,900 for the district's 24

kilometres. The clean-up works out at almost £2,500 per kilometre - or nearly £4,000 per mile.

A report from services development manager Roger Sired commented: "Litter is bad for the environment. Litter along main trunk roads looks unsightly and creates a poor impression of the New Forest."

Council cleansing manager Mike Cash explained that the big problem was clearing the central reservation, which meant that the outside lanes of both the east and west carriageways had to be coned off.

Because of the amount of time needed to clear the stretch, he added, it meant doing the work overnight and using specialist contractors with the lighting, traffic warning equipment and manpower.

The central area is done just once a year and the average haul is about six tons, which comprises mainly drinks cans, crisp packets, paper cardboard and other forms of food cartons as well as vehicle parts and pieces of shredded tyres.

"When we first took the job over from Hampshire County Council in 1990, we picked up 22 tons of the stuff," he said.

In addition to the A31, the district is responsible for dual carriageways and trunk roads on two two-kilometre stretches of the A326 between Ower and Marchwood and four kilometres of the A35 from Colbury to Redbridge.