Our gritting crews have covered more than 115,000 miles treating the roads this winter - the equivalent of FOUR trips around the world.
Since the beginning of November, 21 gritters and drivers have been out in sub-zero temperatures a total of 96 times, spreading 17,754 tonnes of rock salt across 115,740 miles of road.
Some of the conditions the crews have experienced during the cold snap have been some of the most challenging in recent times – with the weather causing one snow plough to overturn on an icy country lane between Church Langton and Tur Langton on Thursday (1 Mar).
The council’s five gritting depots will be restocked this month with 1,500 tonnes of rock salt, in case temperatures plummet again, with crews ready to go out as required.
It has been a challenging time for the county due to the recent spate of snow and ice – we’ve had road surface temperatures as low as -8 degrees, heavy snow and ice to deal with.
A special mention has to go to our highways team for the tremendous work they’ve done in ensuring the roads have been gritted during the night and when needed throughout the day. During this winter we have completed 1,256 night runs to date – a 41 per cent increase on the total number of runs last year.
I would also like to thank the driver whose vehicle overturned last week. He didn’t let the incident affect him and he was back at work the next night helping to keep the county moving.
Person:Councillor Blake Pain, cabinet member for highways
It is not just the council’s crews who have been out gritting to ensure a safer passage on the road network. Farmers and snow wardens across the county have also been making a difference.
Last Wednesday (28 February), a total of 20 tractors with ploughs fitted went out clearing roads affected by heavy snow, while a number of snow wardens have been clearing paths and spreading rock salt on pavements for residents.
I would like to thank the public for its patience while we have treated the roads, and where possible, for keeping to main routes when travelling. I would also like to thank the farmers and snow wardens who have gone above and beyond to help others during this period of winter weather.
We monitor the weather constantly and if freezing temperatures are forecast, our fleet of gritters will be ready to treat major roads and key routes, which equate to almost half of the county's road network.
Person:Councillor Pain