Road littering project
PROJECT RESULTS AND FUTURE POTENTIAL
(Thrown banana peel)
(Hand)
(Trash funnel) (Vehicle) (Road)
Developed for the Danish Design Centre by Goodmorning Technology 2012
Design can create cleaner roads and lay-bys
“59% of Danes admit that they
In 2010-2011, the Danish Design Centre, the network organisation Hold Danmark Rent (Keeping Denmark Tidy) and the design agency Goodmorning Technology carried out a partnership project to develop design-driven solutions to the issue of littering along Danish roads. The background for the project was a report by Hold Danmark Rent which showed that 59% of Danish motorists throw trash out of their car windows, and that every year the Danish state spends close to 22 million kroner to pick up after them. Those figures highlighted the need to change motorists’ behaviour and documented the considerable environmental and economic benefits for society and the state of such a change. This is clearly an area where design can make a difference as a behaviour-changing tool.
have thrown trash out of the car window, and every year the Danish state spends some 22 million kroner to pick up this litter along Danish motorways and in lay-bys.
”
Excerpt from HDR analysis and DDC brief
5122millioner kroner årligt! MILLION kroner A YEAR
Visualisation of the problem
Innovation and user involvement
“…Well, we throw out fruit waste. It
smells up the car – and it doesn’t take long to compost … right?
”
Sales representative
The partnership project promotes a ‘cross-system’ effort where knowledge sharing between organisations builds a community of interests. A selection of research and analysis methods was used to generate extensive knowledge about motorists and their behaviour in the car and in lay-bys. This study painted a clear picture of the motorists’ behaviour and their attitude about littering. It was important to ensure a sense of ownership and to in-
Service and product development
clude the right resources at the right times. This was done in a cross-disciplinary approach and in a close dialogue with all the parties and stakeholders of the project, including representatives from industry, trade organisations and government authorities. This process led to a catalogue of ideas with a variety of proposals. Workshop med stakeholders
“I don’t normally eat in the car,
mostly in the cafeteria. But many of my colleagues often eat in the car, and then it’s easier to simply dump the waste in the large ‘grey bin’ (read: the side of the road). Occasionally, I do it too.
”
Long-haul lorry driver
Implementing Trashlane “We should have one of these in Sweden.� Independent business-owner
One of the proposals from the catalogue of ideas is a Trashlane. It is a dedicated lane where motorists encounter a waste funnel along with signs indicating how they can get rid of their trash without having to get out of their vehicle. The goal is to create a coherent experience that is convenient and fun for the motorists.
5m
Approach to the trash funnel via Trashlane
Bulls eye!
The waste funnel is ready for use, with documented success. However, the full-scale solution is conceived as a complete infrastructure concept. In the long term, the idea is to establish Trashlanes as an alternative approach ramp to motorways, where the trash funnels are emptied via an underground suction system. All the electronic components could be powered by solar cells, and the trash funnel itself could be equipped with LED lighting around the rim to make it visible in the dark.
The infrastructure concept is part of a larger vision from the idea catalogue, which includes a better use of windmills along the motorways, a better integration of electric cars, improved waste sorting, recycling and loyalty programmes, where trash is treated as a resource for society, and visions that reach from the individual citizen to the incineration plants and political decision making.
75% less litter during the trial period
“At Monarch, we used to spend an hour and a half every day collecting litter and emptying waste bins in the lay-bys. That has been reduced to fifteen minutes, so we’re
”
very pleased with the trash funnels.
Restaurant manager of Monarch by Ejer Bavnehøj
In a three-month trial period in autumn 2011, four Trashlanes were established featuring the prototype of the trash funnel in two lay-bys to test the outcome and potential for the solution. At the beginning of the trial period, two additional parties were involved: the Danish Road Directorate, which implemented the concept and provided daily reports on the effects of the project, and the private firm G9, which produced the prototype of the trash funnel.
75% mindre skrald! 75% less trash!
Visualisation of the trash funnel in use
The goal of the test was to reduce the amount of litter on approach ramps by 25%. The final measurements, however, found that the amount had been reduced by an impressive 75%. In absolute numbers, the number of litter items by the two on-ramps had dropped from 209 to 72. This meant the project had a clearly noticeable and very visible effect. It also meant a considerable reduction in the amount of time spent picking up litter in the lay-bys. Thus, the results of the test
show a great potential for the project and good chances of affecting motorists’ behaviour to reduce the amount of litter in Danish roads and lay-bys.
If one trash funnel can collect some 5,475 full trash bags a year that makes 5.5 tons of waste. That corresponds to approximately 60 gigajoules and Årscyklus for en Trashtube
16,666 KWh or a full year’s power consumption for four households.
Trashlane useénfor 1 års driftin med one year Trashlane
Annual cycle for a trashlane
5,475 5475 trash bags skraldesække
5.5 tons waste 5,5 tonsofaffald til for incineration forbrænding
Annual consumption of 4 husstandes power for 4 households. energiforbrug på et år
85% mindre
Development potential for the trash funnel
TRASHT PLEAS N Version 2.0 of the trash funnel The original version was intended to have LED lighting around the rim, but reflective tape would be another possibility with lower production and operating costs. The trash funnel could also be equipped with a sensor that sends a GPS signal when it is full. SENSOR Sensor technology
The future trash funnel now needs to be developed from a mere prototype to a finished product, ready for manufacturing. Trash GARBAGE
Based on the positive results, the potential in both the Danish and the international markets is considered very promising. Additional commercial partnerships are also a possibility. A sensor sends an alert when the trash funnel needs to be emptied.
Do you want to know more?
For additional information about cleaner roads in Denmark, please contact: Hold Danmark Rent Bjarke Lembrecht Frandsen - blf@holddanmarkrent.dk www.holddanmarkrent.dk/article/aktiviteter_designprojekt_10-11 For additional information about behaviour-changing design and innovation, please contact:: Goodmorning Technology Lars Thomsen - lars@gmtn.dk www.gmtn.dk/work/trash-tube-pilot-project For additional information about design partnerships, please contact: Danish Design Center Iben Højer Hansen - ihh@ddc.dk www.ddc.dk/hold-danmark-rent