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Ever wondered who cleans up after car crashes in Fort Worth? These guys do

The recent winter ice storms caused scores of vehicular crashes in Fort Worth, sending debris strewn across the roadways.

It is a blight that — from a motorist’s perspective — may seem to vanish magically. It’s not magic. Much work goes into clearing and cleaning roads and highways.

Here’s what to know about how clearing happens after accidents, as well as how litter is routinely disposed of.

How are wrecks, debris cleaned up on Fort Worth roads and highways?

The Code Compliance Department of Fort Worth responds to car accident cleanups as needed — such as when someone reports it or as part of a scheduled cleanup. The department also responds if the police department directly puts in a request, but that is usually after other accident cleanup efforts have been exhausted.

Debris from minor accidents is cleared by a contracted wrecker company, which tows the vehicle from the scene of the accident. The Fort Worth Police Department maintains a list of approved companies.

Major accident scenes are cleaned by the wrecker companies, with the help of Texas Department of Transportation crews if requested.

What does routine street cleanup consist of?

The city has been divided into quadrants for scheduled cleanup, where litter cleanup efforts are concentrated to one of four quadrants daily and repeated each week. All litter and debris collected is taken to the Southeast Landfill for disposal.

All litter in Fort Worth can be reported via the MyFW app, online through the Customer Care webpage or by calling the city call center at 817-392-1234.

Code Compliance has two major functions when it comes to litter cleanups and maintenance — litter collections and street sweeping. There are both internal crews and crews under contract with the city to regularly clean up litter on major roadways, curbs, gutters, arterials, thoroughfares and commercial corridors throughout Fort Worth.

Code Compliance has partnered with Sweeping Corp of America and the City Council approved the contract that went into effect Nov. 1, 2022. Code Compliance has also partnered with UpSpire to contract nine litter crews that operate five days a week on public rights-of-way on scheduled routes throughout the city.

Fort Worth litter collection data is available online

Code Compliance held two hiring fairs in order to hire 20 equipment operators for its litter collections team, as part of the approved increase of the Environmental Protection Fund that went into effect Jan. 1. An invitation to bid, seeking to purchase street sweepers for the Property Management department on behalf of the Code Compliance department, closes on Feb. 9.

Data for all litter collections, including street sweeping, can be viewed on the monthly code report.

State highway litter is addressed by the State of Texas through the Texas Department of Transportation. All state highway litter can be reported through the MyFW app or directly through the TxDOT complaint website.