New county gritters broken in

Herefordshire’s newly expanded fleet of gritters has been given its first outing ahead of the county’s winter road maintenance season.

Such dry runs are “a crucial part of the preparations to ensure the county is winter-ready”, providing a test of equipment and systems and enabling drivers to familiarise themselves with priority routes, the council said.

Herefordshire Council approved spending of £1.16 million on eight new gritters at the start of last year, bringing its fleet up to 15 vehicles, along with £180,000 on renewing “outdated” weather monitoring and forecasting stations.

More recently it has attracted controversy over the awarding of a £170,000 contract for weather forecasting, with an online petition opposing the decision drawing 891 signatures.

The council says the service helps ensure cost-effective provision of winter maintenance by combining data from roadside weather stations around the county with satellite and radar data.

Simon Robinson, operations manager for the council’s contractor Balfour Beatty Living Places, said that with the latest test runs, “the team have been becoming accustomed to the new weather forecast provider, and with the newly procured gritters, which have greatly standardised the fleet”.

The council’s cabinet member for roads Barry Durkin added: “As we know from previous years, challenging conditions can arise very rapidly, so whatever the weather, we encourage people to be aware of the forecasts and please always take care on our roads and pavements.”

For its population, Herefordshire has a relatively high mileage of priority routes, extending to 600 miles around the county, with a further 420 miles of secondary routes which are treated when necessary.