Warwickshire County Council is reassuring residents that highways across the county will continue to be gritted this winter.
With the winter gritting period now well underway, Warwickshire County Council is reassuring residents that, despite national media claims to the contrary, its gritting fleet is unaffected by the ongoing shortage of Heavy Goods Vehicles Drivers and will operate as normal over the winter months.
Last winter season, Warwickshire’s gritting service:
- Carried out 53 gritting runs;
- Covered 58,300 miles in total, which is the equivalent of approximately 2.3 times around the circumference of our planet; (Based on 24,901 miles circumference);
- Used approximately 9,692 Tonnes of salt which is equivalent to 346 lorry loads. (28T delivered each lorry);
- Involved 95 members of staff, including drivers, depot supervisors, duty managers; and
- Was supported by County’s Fleet Maintenance Service who keep the 38 gritting vehicles on the road (29 front line vehicles and 9 reserves)
Warwickshire County Council has 5 dedicated depots for the gritting fleet, one on each geographical area of the county and have six weather stations and even employs a dedicated winter roads weather forecaster to help decide when there will be a need to grit.
Cllr Wallace Redford, Warwickshire County Council Portfolio Holder for Transport and Highways said: “Our gritting fleet in Warwickshire always does a fantastic job keeping the network running smoothly across the winter months and this season will be no exception. Due to fantastic resilience planning within the service, its core business of clearing the county’s roads will be affected by the nationwide shortage of HGV drivers.
“The work of the Service this season will be of continued importance keeping the roads clear of snow and ice for motorists.
“Last winter season saw the Service welcoming five replacement gritters to the fleet, which were selected based on their low emissions so that WCC can keep its commitment to doing all that it can to reduce its carbon footprint and minimise its impact on climate change. “
In November 2020, residents were given the opportunity to name some of Warwickshire’s gritting fleet. The names chosen were:
- Usain Salt
- Professor Chris Gritty
- Gritta Thunberg
- Snowbi-Gone Kenobi
- The Mighty Thaw
- Charlie Boy
- Grey13 Hero
Watch out for these gritters across the County this Winter and send us your pictures to @Warwickshire_CC on Twitter and @Warwickshire County Council on Facebook.
For more information about how Transport and Highways in Warwickshire, visit: https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/roads-transport