Led by organiser Jon Ross, a group of five set out to clean up the highway and make the town a more attractive place to visit. 

Mr Ross said he was disgusted by what he found when travelling along the Western Highway. 

“I drove out there twice and calculated that (for) every three metres there was rubbish,” Mr Ross said. 

“When we got out there, there was just so much rubbish. It wasn’t just along the side of the road, it spread out further than that.”

Mr Ross and his team braved freezing conditions to clean up the 500 metre stretch of highway last month. 

They intended to walk from the rest stop located just outside of Ararat to Armstrong, which is 7.2 kilometres.

“We thought ‘it’ll only be a couple of hours, we’ll get it done’,” Mr Ross said. 

However, the group was in for a rude shock. 

“It took two hours to clean up 500 metres. Driving past, you look at it and think you get an idea but it is so much worse.” 

A vacuum cleaner and a couple of tyres were among the items the group found, but it was mainly takeaway food wrappers. 

“It is so sad,” Mr Ross said. 

“The reason I did the clean up is because I love Ararat, it is my town and to see it that messy...People come here and think of the Biggest Loser. 

“They see the food wrappers and think ‘these fat slobs can’t even clean up after themselves’, and that’s not true. It’s heartbreaking.

“Most of the rubbish isn’t from the townspeople, it’s from people travelling along the highway through Ararat.”

Mr Ross said he has plans to return although that will depend on whether he can gain training and permits to do so.

“I’m hoping I’ll hear in September if I can get a permit, and then I can organise a really big clean up from here to Armstrong. I’d really like to go back.” 

Each year, Clean Up Australia organises an event where everyday Australians are encouraged to join and help tidy up the country. 

While parks were again the most popular site surveyed in Victoria in 2014, outdoor transport sites recorded the highest average number of rubbish items per site at 1,539. 

This was an increase of 1,230 from the average item count of 309 across seven sites in 2013, while roadways increased from 310 across 51 sites to 473 from 19 sites. 

According to Clean Up Australia data, beverage containers and associated rubbish made up a whopping 34 per cent of the rubbish count in 2014.