Okay, someone please tell me why people think it is okay to throw bags of fast food garbage out their car window traveling at 75 mph in high traffic on I35. We witnessed such a travesty firsthand yesterday afternoon as we made our way back from Dallas. A young couple, presumably college students, passed us and proceeded to start throwing trash out the window, hitting our car and also the tractor-trailer beside us. We debated on whether to call 911 but didn't know what the protocol was for doing so. Is it really an emergency? One could make the argument that they were causing a hazardous condition on the road. We followed the car (at a safe distance) for the next hour or so into Austin and gave them the hairy eyeball every time we passed them or they passed us. Luckily they didn't throw out any more garbage – I guess they ran out. We were hoping to talk with them by following them upon exiting. But we lost them when we got to Austin. I also took down their vehicle information and plan to write a letter to TxDOT or if I still feel like it, to talk with a fellow attorney who handles personal injury cases against aggressive and reckless drivers. We'll see... Still, what's wrong with people?
UPDATE: The Texas Department of Transportation Don't Mess with Texas campaign has a website where you can report a litterer. Check it out here.
So, when you see litter exit a vehicle, intentionally or accidentally, write down the following information—license plate number, make and color of vehicle, date and time, location, who tossed the litter and what was tossed. Then go to the website and report it! TxDOT compares the information to their vehicle registration database and when an exact match is located, they will send the litterer a Don't Mess with Texas litterbag along with a letter reminding them to keep their trash off of our roads.
