There\u2019s no sweep till Brooklyn.<\/p>\n
Litter-loving tourists are leaving their marks \u2014 and whatever else they have in their pockets \u2014 on the Brooklyn Bridge<\/a> in one of the most trashy trends to grip the city in recent months.<\/p>\n Scores of dirty tissues, hairbands, condoms, tampons and even panties are being tied to a doomed fence in the middle of the iconic span every day in such high frequency that do-gooder cleanup crews cannot keep up with the litter. <\/p>\n Tourists are tying scores of trash to the fence in the center of the Brooklyn Bridge. Gregory P. Mango for NY Post<\/p>\n \u201cWe literally just walked past it and seen it and got excited,\u201d explained Helen Burton of Birmingham, England, whose two daughters and a friend each put a \u201cbobble,\u201d or hair tie, on a section of the bridge.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s something we had on us, so we thought it\u2019s quite nice!\u201d<\/p>\n The group had not heard of the trend before embarking on their stroll across the landmark, but were eager to participate.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can leave something here to show that we\u2019ve been here,\u201d said Amelie, 13, with her sister, 11-year-old Jess, adding that the trash heap seemed \u201cauthentic.\u201d <\/p>\n A tampon is one of the pieces of trash tourists decided to leave behind. Gregory P. Mango for NY Post<\/p>\n The nasty trend has been plaguing the Brooklyn Bridge on-and-off for years, but skyrocketed in recent weeks as the city\u2019s attention was seized elsewhere by the recent cold snap and monster snow dumping \u2014 prompting locals to take matters into their own hands to clean up the embarrassing trash heap.<\/p>\n \u201cI walk over the bridge almost every day. And one day I was just like \u2018I\u2019ve had enough!’\u201d said Ellen Baum, of Prospect Heights, who has documented her impressive trash collection on social media<\/a> every day since Feb. 3.<\/p>\n It takes Baum roughly 90 minutes to clear a \u201csection\u201d of the fence \u2014 or the short spacing between the two poles \u2014 but the undeterred tourists continue to walk up and tie their candy wrappers even as they watch her removing the trash.<\/p>\n Ellen Baum of Brooklyn Heights has been clearing sections of the bridge every day for weeks. Courtesy: Ellen Baum<\/p>\n It takes as long as two hours for Baum to clear a \u201csection\u201d of the fencing. Courtesy: Ellen Baum<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just f\u2013king disgusting,\u201d said Baum, 37, saying she\u2019s been met with \u201cdetractors\u201d who say the trash wall is a symbol of global art.<\/p>\n \u201cI just disagree completely. The interactions and conversations that take place on the bridge are the art. The bridge itself is the art. We don\u2019t need to put literal trash on it,\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no other like monumental, or landmarks that people would think it\u2019s OK to do this. I don\u2019t know why people are compelled to do it. I also have a lot of love in my life, and I\u2019ve never once felt compelled to tie literal trash to a fence to show it.\u201d<\/p>\n