CIGARETTE butts could soon be a thing of the past on town centre streets across Dudley borough.

Dudley Council is currently trialling sweeping equipment aimed specifically at picking up cigarette ends, which so often litter roads across the country.

Different models of the sweeping machines are being trialled in Dudley and Stourbridge town centres before the authority commits to the state-of-the-art equipment.

The council is looking to introduce the specialist equipment which can reach tight corners currently inaccessible to general sweepers. Street cleansing bosses are also looking to provide more litter bins which have an ashtray fitted on top.

Councillor Angus Adams, cabinet member for transportation, said: “We hope by trialling these machines we will find a suitable piece of equipment to make cigarette litter a thing of the past in our town centres.”

Meanwhile council enforcement officers continue to patrol borough streets and fine people caught dropping litter, including cigarette ends. People can be issued with a fixed penalty fine of £75 if they are witnessed dropping litter. If they fail to pay the fine they can end up in court where the maximum fine on conviction can rise to £2,500.