A Tampa Bay resident reached out to Bay News 9’s Traffic Expert, Chuck Henson, after noticing something out of place on her morning commute.

  • Garbage truck abandoned off Memorial Highway near TIA
  • Truck, owned by state contractor, left to rust, rot
  • Truck abandoned since March

Laura Fonseca said a garbage truck has been abandoned for months on the overpass of the Veterans on ramp of Memorial Highway.

“A few months back I noticed this white truck way in the background on the overpass of the Veterans on ramp on Memorial. I kept seeing it in the same exact spot. So, I decided after months that I would call the Tampa Bay Police Department,” Fonseca said.

She has also called three other agencies about the garbage truck—Clearwater Police, the Department of Transportation, and the Tampa Sanitation Department.

“Well, like I told the Sanitation Department, I think I found a dump truck…you might have lost one. And I thought for sure they would call me back at least to find out so they could go by. But they never did,” Fonseca said.

The truck has been sitting there--well off the highway in the middle of the ramp around TIA--rusting since March and there’s a bad smell coming from its contents.

Chuck Henson reached out to FDOT and they said the truck is owned by a contractor who works for the state--picking up litter and debris on the Courtney Campbell Causeway and Airport property.

Why the contractor wound abandon such an expensive vehicle to rust and rot is unknown.

The state said they’ve asked FDOT Maintenance to work with the contractor to have the truck removed from the median as soon as possible.