Street Sweeping

For cleaner streets…your move counts!

Street sweepers remove harmful pollutants from
the streets once a month, but debris collects daily. Moving your
car on sweep day is the most important thing you can do to ensure
clean streets for San José.

Keep our streets neat and protect the watershed, too!

Here are some additional things you can do, for
a more effective sweep and to keep our streets clean between sweeps.

• Pick
  up litter and other debris around storm drains to
  prevent them from causing flooding or washing into our creeks
  and bay. Call Pick Up San Jose at (408) 535-4000 to become a litter
  clean-up volunteer.
• Street sweepers avoid broken curbs and gutters, which damage
  their equipment. Call the Sidewalk Section at (408) 277-3158 for
  a free permit to repair
  broken curbs and gutters. Homeowners are responsible
  for making and paying for repairs.
• Spilled automotive fluids wash into our creeks and bay through
  storm drains. Protect our water and wildlife: maintain
  vehicles and clean up spills. Call (866) WATERSHED
  to find out more.
• Move vehicles off the street
  on your sweep day. One parked car equals nearly three car lengths
  of space that can’t be swept because the street sweeper must leave
  room to avoid it.
• Fallen leaves collected by the street sweeper end up in the
  landfill. Consider using them to make
  compost or as mulch under trees and bushes. Or collect
  and save them until your next collection day to be turned into
  compost for City parks.
• Sweep up yard
  trimmings that remain behind after collection, don’t
  re-pile them. Instead, save them for next week’s collection. Street
  sweepers drive around piles to avoid rocks or other unseen items
  that can damage their equipment.
• Street sweepers steer clear of low-hanging tree branches to
  avoid breaking them. Prune tree branches to at
  least 13 feet above the curb. Call the Street Tree Section at
  (408) 277-2762 for a free
  pruning permit for trees growing between the sidewalk and
  street.