SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — When News 8 viewers reached out to us last month, we took a look at what was causing all the litter and trash to pile up alongside Kearny Villa Road.
Connie and Paul Gach had submitted numerous Get It Done reports over the previous year without any results.
After the segment aired, city crews from the Environmental Services Department teamed up with Alpha Project workers to remove nearly three tons of trash along the northbound and southbound lanes of Kearny Villa Road from Miramar Road down toward Highway 52.
“As I was riding along, the people picking up, the trash extended for about a mile or more, and every time I passed by some workers, I yelled out, ‘Thank you, thank you,’ because it really made me feel good and I appreciated their work,” said bicyclist Paul Gach.
“All the work that went into putting a team together to come out here and clean up the road,” said Connie Gach. “I mean that was huge!”
After the trash had been removed, Paul and Connie noticed the drastic difference right away.
“It felt really good,” said Paul. “I felt like I was riding in a place that was clean and more natural, and all the trash was gone and I just love that.”
‘You know it’s just an eyesore when you see trash out,” said Connie. “And now it’s just so much more enjoyable.”
Connie has spent quite a bit of time trying to keep up with the litter, but it piles up pretty quickly along this road.
“If we can just keep at it a little bit at a time, that’ll help a lot,” said Connie.
Ideally, they’d like to see litter picked up along Kearny Villa Road regularly, and they know it takes a lot of effort.
"We're just really happy with the city for putting that effort into it and getting it done," said Connie.
In the meantime, Connie and Paul are enjoying their bike rides a whole lot more thanks to the special effort by city crews.
“It looks so much better,” said Connie.
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