Rats!!

Never thought of Cheltenham as Midlands?
I know what you mean about street cleaners, very few of them seem to have much idea at all now. I'm not sure whether they are trained at all, just given the barrow and told to get on with it, not a "Trigger" among them!
Hitchin seems to have more than it's fair share of chewing gum, which is periodically removed with a pressure washer.
 
Ah, Redhead - very good point. I hadn't thought of them not sweeping any more, but you're right, they don't. Well, I've seen one old boy doing it, but the younger, newer models seem to just use the long grabbers. There are also loads more pavement eating and drinking spots, as you've noted. Food and drink gets squidged into the pavement, leaving a smelly, greasy residue. Even things like the steps into supposedly immaculate inner sanctums like those to Boots and Barclays Bank here are grimed and gum-spattered. No businesses spend a quid or two on cleaning the outside areas of their properties.

I don't know if it's still true, but I believe that in Germany you are personally responsible, as both a homeowner and a commercial business, for the pavements outside your place. Maybe we should introduce this here, because the Councils are too sluttish to bother.
 
I regularly see street cleaners both around home (Islington council) and work (Hammersmith & Fulham) using both brooms and the grabbers.

Chewing gum's a shocker though, isn't it? I see the Irish government is threatening to put a levy on chewing gum sales to pay for it's cleanup again - they nearly did it a few years back but got 'persuaded' not to by the industry.
 
Helluva mess here, Gareth - everywhere's dotted with the grey residue and I've tracked it home a couple of times, too. Worse when you're wearing cleated soles and the gunk just gets right into them.
 
Many years ago, when I had teeth, I used to chew gum while riding my motorbike & I would usually just spit it out along the way. One day I did just that, having forgotten that I had just treated myself to one of these new fangled, full face crash helmets. Unfortunately in those days I used to sport a full "Grizzly Adams" beard!
 
Never thought of Cheltenham as Midlands?QUOTE]

Only just. It's neither Midlands nor West Country. Bit like the kid no-one picks for their team.

Unlike Trigger, I think most of our cleaners would be getting awards for genuinely making their brooms last 25 years.
 
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