The City of San Diego is taking a data-driven approach to make selective changes to its street sweeping program that will help maximize the trash and debris removed from neighborhoods and prevent pollution from reaching the ocean.

Starting Thursday, Sept. 1, the City’s Stormwater Department will increase and decrease the frequency of select street sweeping routes. Routes with high frequency and small trash collection will be decreased; routes with low frequency and large trash collection will be increased. In addition, four routes will have new signage posted to implement limited-hour parking restrictions over the next few months.

Following a data-driven analysis, the Stormwater Department determined changes were necessary for parking restrictions and sweeping frequencies in some communities to optimize the efficiency and effectiveness of the street sweeping program.

Those route changes include:

• Increased street sweeping for specific streets in Clairemont, Linda Vista, Miramar, Mira Mesa and University City effective Sept. 1.
• Decreased street sweeping for specific streets in Peninsula, Midway-Pacific Highway, Balboa Park, Normal Heights, Kensington, College Area, Grantville, Logan Heights, Encanto and Golden Hill effective Sept. 1.
• New limited-hour parking restrictions for specific streets in Encanto, North Clairemont, Allied Gardens and Clairemont Mesa. Implemented from now through May 2023, with a 30-day grace period after the signs are posted before any vehicle citations.

The City will conduct robust outreach in neighborhoods where new signs are posted – including direct mail and informational flyers distributed on parked vehicles – to inform residents of the coming changes. Vehicle citations will begin after a 30-day grace period following the sign installation for areas with new parking restrictions.

In all, 13 routes covering over 300 miles of streets will experience adjustments with the goal of optimizing the efficiency and effectiveness of the street sweeping program and providing more equitable service citywide.

“Street sweeping is one of the most effective tools we have to keep our neighborhoods free of trash and stop pollution from reaching our local waterways and the ocean,” said Bethany Bezak, Interim Director of the Stormwater Department. “After analyzing years of data, we identified several opportunities where a slight increase or decrease in the frequency of our street sweeping efforts would significantly bolster the amount of trash and debris collected citywide. These changes will help us continue our mission to ensure clean water and clean beaches for all of San Diego.”

Street sweeping is a pollution prevention service that protects local waterways and infrastructure by strategically targeting trash and pollution removal in urban environments. Street sweeper vehicles are outfitted with water sprayers, rotating brushes and a vacuum, which work together to remove toxic pollutants and trash from roads while reducing dust levels.

Without street sweeping, those pollutants would eventually get picked up by stormwater, flow into the storm drain system, and go untreated into local waterways and the ocean. About 80% of all ocean pollution begins inland and flows through gutters, storm drains and watersheds to the coast. The City’s fleet of 28 sweepers covers 61,000 miles of streets annually, removing 220,000 pounds of trash and debris.

San Diego residents can go to the City’s interactive street sweeping map to check if their street is affected by the changes or go to ThinkBlue.org for more information.

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