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Martha’s Vineyard’s Adopt-A-Bike-Path program was created after two seasonal residents, Michelle Oldershaw and her son Luke Oldershaw, began to notice litter piling up along their favorite bike route.
The organized effort to keep Vineyard bike paths clear of trash started as an offshoot of the state Adopt-A-Highway program. In the highway maintenance program, individuals or groups can “adopt” sections of roads or highways that they then regularly clean. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) currently has 134 Adopt-A-Highway groups across the state, along with 172 Sponsor-A-Highway segments.
According to Michelle, she and Luke adopted the stretch of bike path that runs past Morning Glory Farm toward the intersection of West Tisbury Road and Airport Road. “It started the summer [of 2022] when Luke was 12 — he had phased out of most of the Island summer camps, but wasn’t quite old enough to start working yet,” Michelle said. “We were looking for things we could do so we could spend some time together.” The mother and son team enjoyed biking along the scenic paths that serpentine the Vineyard, particularly along the West Tisbury road route. They would regularly encounter roadside litter during their excursions, and would pick up what they could and bring it back home on their bikes to discard properly. “Sometimes there would be a ton of stuff, or larger stuff that we would have to circle back for. We saw a strong potential need, and that got us thinking,” Michelle said.
Michelle had heard of other groups on the Island that were organizing beach cleanups and some that had taken on the responsibility of cleaning public woodland walking trails. She also was aware of the Adopt-A-Highway program that MassDOT offered, and had heard about efforts to symbolically adopt roadways where her family lives in Southborough. So she reached out to the state to see what she could do. “We were really surprised to learn that MassDOT didn’t have an existing bike path adoption program,” Michelle said. For Michelle and Luke, they were happy to go out to the bike path by themselves and fill a few trash bags, but Michelle said she wanted more resources and support, and liked the idea of being part of a structured program. She said MassDOT was pleased with the idea, and wanted to help in any way they could.
A short time later, the first Adopt-A-Bike-Path program in the state was launched as a pilot initiative on the Vineyard in 2022. MassDOT was able to provide Michelle, Luke, and other volunteers with the same resources they provide their Adopt-A-Highway volunteers: trash bags, sterile gloves, safety vests, and video training for new participants. “They even said they would come and collect all the trash bags after each cleanup, so we don’t have to pay to dispose of the trash we pick up,” Michelle said. To make it official, the state was able to modify their Adopt-A-Highway road signs to read “Adopt-A-Bike-Path,” and the West Tisbury Road segment of path tidied by Michelle and Luke was dubbed “MV Litter Free.”
After the program was created on-Island, Michelle agreed to commit two years to upkeeping the MV Litter Free bike route, and MassDOT requested that the team conduct monthly cleanups from the months of April through November. So far, Michelle said, it’s been a breeze keeping up with their obligation of cleaning the approximately 2.2-mile stretch of bike path that runs from Cannonball Park up West Tisbury Road. Michelle and Luke have enlisted friends and family members to help out during the cleanups, and the group has expanded. “We participated in the Climate Action Fair in the spring of 2023, we had a table with our trash grabbers so kids could mess around with them — we had a signup sheet there and we got five additional volunteers who have helped us over the past two years,” Michelle said.
For the gang of intrepid stewards, whenever a driver, biker, or runner stops to ask what they’re doing on the roadside, it’s an opportunity to raise awareness. People see the group with their reflective vests, trash grabbers, and trash bags, and often honk or wave in appreciation, and some will stop to chat. “We had one family who pulled over and handed us gift cards to Espresso Love as a token of their thanks,” Michelle said. “Lots of people stop to ask what group we are a part of, and that gives us an opportunity to explain and maybe even get more people involved in keeping the Island clean.” Shortly after the MV Litter Free crew got to work, a father and son team saw them volunteering and have since adopted their own stretch of bike path along Beach Road, nicknamed Sam’s Sidekicks.
The Oldershaws’ sustainability journey began before they created MV Litter Free; Michelle said she inherited an important value from her parents that has guided her and her son’s work on the Vineyard: “Leave it better than you found it.” The family has participated in other public service projects together, including working to move families out of shelters and into stable living situations as part of a Boston-based program called Heading Home. Michelle’s two sons have been composting and recycling in their school cafeterias, and when they visit the Island, they attend Climate Cafes held by Felix Neck’s Josey Kirkland.
In order to better understand why people litter, the MV Litter Free team conducted a few independent research projects, and coined the term “vice litter” after studying the various kinds of refuse they found along their bike path. “There is certainly stuff that blows off the back of trucks, which is accidental, but there is a much bigger category of items — nip or beer bottles, soda and energy drinks, candy wrappers, cigarette butts, lottery tickets,” Michelle said. “Most of these types of trash indicate that these people who are driving or walking along the bike path are consuming something they know isn’t particularly good for them, and once they are done they just don’t want to see it anymore.”
I feel like everyone can do a little bit to keep the environment clean, and I’m just doing my little bit to help out. And changing one small behavior like putting a trash bag in your car could make a big difference — you don’t need to throw it out the window.
– Luke Oldershaw
As a parent, Michelle said she’s proud to see her sons wanting to make an impact on the place they love so much. Despite the dirty work, and the cold off-season mornings or hot summer afternoons, the Oldershaws are learning what it means to be responsible members of the community. “At first I really wanted to solidify in their minds why we’re doing this. It’s our responsibility as human beings in a place we live to preserve and protect the natural beauty that exists here,” Michelle said.
Luke and his brother have received some accolades for their work on the Vineyard. During a cleanup in August 2024, an Edgartown Police Patrolman stopped along the roadside to chat with the boys. Afterwards, the Edgartown Police Department gave a shoutout to the MV Litter Free crew on their social media pages. Luke recently completed 50 hours of community service work on the project, and received the Presidential Volunteer Service Award, a national honor that recognizes individuals, families, and groups who volunteer their time and skills to serve their communities.
Luke told Bluedot he was proud to get the award, but really just wants to focus on keeping his favorite recreation area clear of trash. “I feel like everyone can do a little bit to keep the environment clean, and I’m just doing my little bit to help out,” Luke said. “And changing one small behavior like putting a trash bag in your car could make a big difference — you don’t need to throw it out the window.”
To begin the process of adopting a highway or a bike path in Massachusetts, email [email protected]. Visit mass.gov/how-to/adopt-a-highway to learn more about the program, and check out mvlitterfree.org to keep up the Oldershaws’ efforts.
