LEAF VACUUMING COLLECTION DISTRICT
General Location Boundaries
CLICK HERE TO SEE APPROXIMATELY WHEN LEAVES WILL BE VACUUMED FROM YOUR STREET
DOWNLOAD THE LEAFING INFORMATION FLYER
The 2012 Leaf Collection Season
The Division of Highway Services started the FIRST round of leaf collection services on November 5, 2012. Our crews expect to collect over 150,000 cubic yards of leaves this season. Crews are nearing completion of the SECOND round of collections.
Leaves collected to date: 133,000 cubic yards
Residents can call 240-777-7623 to report leaves missed during the second pickup .
Please remember to keep your leaves OUT OF THE STREET!
Placing leaf piles in the street can cause many problems such as:
· Disrupting traffic - many neighborhoods have narrow streets and on-street parking. Large piles of leaves extending out into the roadway limits parking and the ability of vehicles, especially school buses, to safely negotiate the streets.
· Disrupting surface drainage – rain storms can cause leaves and debris to clog storm drains and ditches. This leads to localized flooding.
· Hampering snow removal operations – snow covered leaf piles can become frozen to the roadway surface and can also become extremely heavy, taxing the abilities of our snow plows to move them and slowing down snow clearing in your neighborhood. Snow plow drivers may also mistake snow-covered leaf pile for snow, spreading the leaves all over the street. Residents then have a difficult time raking these scattered leaves back up.
· Posing a fire hazard to vehicles parked over them – there have been many examples of car fires that were caused by the extremely hot catalytic converters of the cars’ exhaust system igniting the dry leaves.
· Becoming very slippery in wet weather - causing hazards to vehicles attempting to stop, start or change direction. Accidents have resulted from such causes.
Keeping leaf piles out of the streets prevents these problems. Rest assured that our crews can get your to leaves that are placed on the grass. Any discoloration of the grass is temporary as it is dormant at this time.
We appreciate your cooperation with our efforts to promote a safe and efficient leaf collection operation in your neighborhood!
Please remove the leaf piles from the street. Failure to do so may result in a fine of up to $1000 for illegal dumping.
 
The Leaf Collection District is generally south of Bel Pre Road, east of I-270/I-495 and west of New Hampshire Avenue, to the District line. DETAILED MAP
If your home is not in the Leaf Collection District, click here for information to become included in the Leaf Collection Program.
The Leaf Collection Program continues for 6 to 8 weeks, and includes postings for 2 scheduled pick-ups.
First collection. We will post green signs throughout the work areas several days before our crews’ arrival. We will attempt to allow a weekend for residents to rake their leaves to the edge of the road for vacuum pick-up. Signs will be removed after our crews complete each street.
The second and final fall collection will begin after Thanksgiving. The timing will depend on weather conditions. Red signs will indicate that this is the final collection. The same posting, collection, and sign removal procedures are used for both vacuum collections.
If you believe that your leaves may have been missed, please contact the MC311 call center by clicking in the MC311 logo on the left or by dialing 311. Additionally, you may call DHS at 240-777-7623.
The actual collection of the leaves can be affected by rain, snow and ice. These factors may cause a longer than normal collection effort. Depending on the severity of the inclement weather (which affects the ability of our leaf vacuums to collect leaves) other means of collection, such as front-end loaders, may be employed.
Residents Should:
· Note the information on the posted signs
· Rake leaves to the road edge (see pictures) or place leaves in paper yard waste bags.
· Leaves placed in plastic bags will not be collected.
· Keep parked vehicles away from leaf piles
Residents Should Not:
· Place leaf piles in the street (see pictures)
· Place sticks or other debris in the leaves
· Place leaves in plastic bags
· Block access to leaf piles by parking cars on or in front of leaf piles
Thank you for helping us keep our streets safe during the Leaf Collection Program! | 
