AI Used by Glasgow to Deal with Litter

Glasgow uses groundbreaking AI data processing and advanced image-capturing technologies to map out litter hotspots.

02:14 24 October 2023

Scientists from Ellipsis Earth have teamed up with Hubbub, an environmental charity organisation, to track roadside litter in Glasgow using "groundbreaking" AI data processing and advanced image-capturing technology. Using vehicle cameras, they create a detailed map of the locations and types of litter dropped on roadsides, junctions, city centre and retail areas across the city. 

Initial findings show that litter accumulates where vehicles drive at slower speeds, such as roundabouts, junctions and traffic lights. It was also found that litter from food and drink packaging is twice as high in out-of-town sites than in the city centre and that litter is dropped on average every three seconds on the roads of Glasgow. The most common types of litter found on the roadside include plastic fragments, glass bottles, paper and cigarette butts. 

Paul Wallace, Campaign and Social Innovation Manager at Keep Scotland Beautiful commented: “Scotland is facing a litter emergency. Our data highlights that many of our streets, open spaces, and roadsides are blighted by litter, so it’s imperative that we trial new, and innovative ways of tackling it.

“Utilising technology, such as AI, to collect data allows us to better target action and adds value to the thousands of data points, we have from on the ground surveys across the country.  And by working in collaboration across sectors we can ensure initiatives such as this tie into the actions needed to deliver Scotland’s National Litter and Flytipping Strategy.

“With 89%of people perceiving litter levels to be a problem nationally we know that engaging a broader audience through fun activities will have an impact and it is great to see Glasgow leading the way to trial this study.”

Gavin Ellis, Co-founder and Director of Hubbub said: “This is the first time AI has been used to map out roadside litter and the learnings we can take from this work in Glasgow can actually be applied to areas across the UK.

“The data shows we need to make it easy for drivers to bin rubbish, provide bins where drivers stop, and ensure they are visible and easy to access. It’s also important we encourage them to bin rubbish before getting on the road again. 

“We strongly believe that collaboration between highway agencies, councils, and businesses is key to tackling roadside litter and that targeting litter hotspots with combined bins and signs save time and money. We look forward to sharing the learnings from this study more widely to help ensure the effort is being targeted in the right places.”