EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WLAX/WEUX) -The Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Adopt-A-Highway program is made up of volunteers who aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty to keep ditches in the community clean.

“You know it’s a great way to give back to your community to your state,” Chief Operations Manager, Tim Mason, said. “You know, the visual effect, roadways look much better.”

However with 2,400 miles of adoptable segments in the region 1,200 miles of highway are still in need of people to help with upkeep. For those interested in taking on some highway all they need to do is sign up and go through safety training.

“Safety’s first,” Technician Senior, Roni Hurt, said. “We have a safety video that needs to be watched online.”

The training covers the basics of working in high traffic areas.

“We always walk with the flow of traffic and you want to make sure you have your vest on at all times,” Hurt said.

Outside of the training the only other requirement is that people pick-up litter by their highways a minimum of three times a year.

“A lot of plastics, lot of paper,” Mason said. “I think material falls out of trucks or off of trucks that have open beds.”

All volunteers will be provided with a safety vest, garbage bags, and a road sign with their name or group’s name marking the segment that they adopted. When a person or a group does adopt a segment there is no limit as to how long they can care for that segment.

Roni Hurt from the Wisconsin DOT said keeping the highways beautified is a way to take pride in being a Wisconsinite.

“Wisconsin’s a beautiful state and I would like to keep it that way,” Hurt said.

If you are interested in volunteering click here for more information.