Amanda Forrester / news@whmi.com

Expect to see Adopt-A-Highway volunteers picking up litter starting this Saturday.

Participants in the Michigan Department of Transportation program will be cleaning highway roadsides July 12 through July 20. This is the second of three scheduled cleanups this year.

Beginning in 1990, the program has grown to around 2,600 groups that have adopted more than 6,000 miles of state highway. According to a press release about the program, more than 36,000 bags of trash were collected in 2024 alone.

Those interested in volunteering must be at least 12 years old and each group needs at least three people. Groups range from members of civic groups, businesses and families. MDOT asks that groups commit to adopting a section of highway for at least two years. There is no fee to participate, and an Adopt-A-Highway sign with the group’s name is posted along the section they adopted.

Volunteers wear high-visibility, yellow-green safety vests when working on the highway, which are required by federal regulations. MDOT provides vests and trash bags for free, and arranges the bags to be hauled away.

The final cleanup this year will be Sept. 20 through 28.

Interested groups can get more information at the link below.