Adopt-A-Highway

For years now we have been hearing about the Adopt-a-Highway Program. We see the signs on the side of the road, but most of us are unsure what they mean. What does it mean to adopt a highway and who is allowed to do it?

The Adopt-a-Highway Program is an international program that has been introduced to 48 states, including Ohio and Kentucky, seven Canadian provinces, Puerto Rico and New Zealand. The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) and the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet both implemented the program in the late 1980s. The program was developed to encourage environmental awareness among communities and discourage littering.

The Adopt-a-Highway Program is open to any established business, association, community or public organization, government entity or even residents. Groups participating in the program “adopt” a stretch of highway and are responsible for picking up litter from this section of road a few times a year. By cleaning a two-mile stretch of highway, volunteers save ODOT time and money by allowing work crews to spend more time on its main functions, such as road maintenance and construction projects. Each Adopt-a-Highway group saves ODOT approximately $800 in litter pickup costs per year.

More than 1,800 volunteers have joined ODOT’s Adopt-a-Highway program since it started in 1989, and over 200,000 bags of trash have been collected each year.

In Kentucky, there are over 1,600 groups participating in the program, cleaning approximately 6,600 miles of highway annually. Each year, however, the Transportation Cabinet’s highway workers spend about 200,000 hours removing litter from Kentucky’s roads, and collect over 96,000 bags of litter, spending approximately $4-5 million a year in litter removal.

Ohio and Kentucky’s Adopt-a-Highway Programs provide trash bags, safety vests and roadside signs to let the community know of a group or individual’s involvement in the program. They also provide information for participating groups on how to keep safe when cleaning the roadways.

A commitment to the program usually lasts two years but groups are encouraged to renew their contract if desired.

To join the Adopt-a-Highway Program or find out more information please contact:

In Ohio: 800-372-7714, or contact your county representative or call Central Office Communications in Columbus at (614) 466-7170.

In Kentucky: (502) 564-4890 at the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, or (859) 341-2700 in District 6.