THE photographs we print today showing rubbish littering the verges of the A64 near York are thoroughly depressing.

This is the main road route into a city known around the world for its beauty and heritage.

Yet those arriving by car from Tadcaster are greeted by what reader Sam Beattie memorably describes as “linear rubbish tips”.

The problem is worst on a stretch of road near Tadcaster.

Fly tippers, and those simply too lazy or ignorant to dispose of their rubbish properly, have turned verges and lay-bys into a dumping ground.

Clearing up this rubbish is not easy. The A64 is a fast and busy road – the number of serious accidents is proof of that.

Selby District Council, which is responsible for rubbish collections on this stretch of the road, says it can only clear the mess when the road is closed, because it is too dangerous otherwise.

The council says litter picks will be organised soon in lay-bys. “However, there are sections of the A64 that we cannot access without a road closure in place,” a spokeswoman said.

Doing that simply for a clean-up would be far too expensive. So the council has little option but to wait until the road is closed for roadworks.

The people who are ultimately responsible are those who drop the litter in the first place.

The council has urged anyone who spots someone dumping rubbish to report them.

Please do so. These people are menaces, with no concern for other people or the environment we all live in. They deserve to be caught and held accountable. That might even act as a deterrent to others.