Vehicles parked improperly frequently prevent or hinder waste collection vehicles from accessing the containers and carrying out their work. A new campaign in Braga is calling on drivers to act responsibly.
AGERE, in partnership with the Braga Municipal Police, is stepping up awareness efforts among drivers about the importance of keeping access to waste disposal areas clear and avoiding parking in front of or too close to waste containers.
The initiative is part of the VIRAL campaign (Veículo Inibidor da Recolha Atempada de Lixo – Vehicle Preventing Timely Waste Collection), a community-based initiative aimed at drawing attention to behaviour that can directly compromise an essential service in the city.
Parking in a way that prevents or restricts access to waste disposal equipment is prohibited. However, AGERE and the Municipal Police will initially focus on a primarily educational approach, raising awareness among drivers about the concrete consequences of this behaviour and encouraging them to change it.
Vehicles parked improperly frequently prevent or hinder waste collection vehicles from approaching the containers and carrying out their work. When there is insufficient access to perform the operation, the collection cannot take place. The vehicle follows a defined route and continues on its way, leaving the waste uncollected. This can result in waste accumulating at the site, causing inconvenience to residents and negatively affecting public health and the city's image.
As part of this partnership, the Braga Municipal Police will also take part in the educational component of the campaign. Whenever vehicles are found to be preventing or restricting waste collection, officers may place a specially designed static-cling sticker on the vehicle. The sticker causes no damage and carries the following message:
“Due to your vehicle being parked improperly, the waste from this container could not be collected. Think twice before parking here.”
This action does not replace the enforcement powers of the Municipal Police, but at this stage it takes a primarily preventive and educational approach: first informing and raising awareness, while making clear the connection between improper parking and the inability to carry out waste collection.
AGERE’s Chairman of the Board, João Granja, states that “a gesture that may seem small, such as parking too close to a waste container, can prevent an essential service from being carried out and affect an entire community.” For this reason, “keeping access to waste containers clear is also a simple way for every citizen to contribute to a cleaner and better-maintained city.”
Rather than simply identifying an offence, the VIRAL campaign aims to make the consequences of this behaviour visible: parking improperly for just a few minutes can mean that waste remains uncollected for a significant period of time, disrupting a public service.
AGERE and the Municipal Police therefore appeal to all drivers to act with care and responsibility. Keeping the space required for waste collection vehicles clear is a simple but essential gesture to ensure that waste is collected on time and that Braga remains clean and well maintained.