Slow Down to Get Around (SDTGA) is a national safety campaign that reminds motorists to drive more carefully when near waste and recycling collection vehicles. Being struck by a motorist is a leading cause of death for waste and recycling collection employees, and with proper awareness, is completely preventable.
Slow Down to Get Around is also the name commonly applied to legislation that requires motorists to slow down or move over when passing waste and recycling vehicles that are in the process of collection. Since the start of the campaign, at least twenty states have enacted some type of SDTGA law to help protect solid waste workers out on the job.
Slow Down to Get Around
When you are driving behind a garbage or recycling truck collecting household waste from curbside bins, slow down. Reducing your speed and leaving a little extra space to accommodate frequent stops could prevent an accident and save a life. And always slow down before passing a recycling or garbage truck.
No matter how busy you are or how much you are running late, safety should always, always come first. Nothing is worth risking your life or the lives of others because of reckless driving.
Keeping You and Your Neighbors Safe
Garbage trucks are big. So big, in fact, they are difficult to see around. While you are rushing to get around a garbage or recycling collection truck, you may not notice a a person climbing in or out of the truck. If a waste or recycling worker is bending over to pick up litter that may have fallen out of bin, you are even less likely to see them, and the faster you are going, the less time you have to stop.
Individuals in the waste and recycling industry don’t just clean our neighborhoods, they live there too. These men and women are our neighbors, cleaning and sharing our communities. The least we can do is keep them safe by slowing down and sharing the road.
Did you know small children often come out to greet their neighborhood garbage truck? While we love these little faces, we worry about their safety. Kids are especially difficult to spot even in the best conditions. When they are on the other side of the garbage truck, you may not see them until it is too late.
Life is Precious
This is a message everyone needs to hear. That is why Waste & Recycling Workers Week is supporting SWANA’s Slow Down to Get Around (SDTGA) initiative.
No matter where you are going or why you need to get there, please, slow down. For your safety and the safety of our waste and recycling workers, Slow Down to Get Around.
Help us protect the lives of our waste and recycling workers as well as the lives of our friends and neighbors. Forward this message to friends, family, neighbors and coworkers. If your state does not already have SDTGA laws in place, reach out to your local and state lawmakers. Ask them to do their part to keep us all safe.
Read more here:
https://www.wasterecyclingworkersweek.org/save-a-life-slow-down-to-get-around/