Preparing for colder weather

With snow predicted overnight tonight, Gloucestershire County Council is preparing its team of gritters for action. Gritters will be out treating the roads this afternoon ahead of evening rush hour and again after midnight. The 34-strong army will be going out all across the county as the forecast is below freezing throughout Gloucestershire.

Weather experts are predicting snow to reach Gloucestershire from the East just after midnight.
It is expected to continue until early morning with snowfall between two and five centimeters by midday tomorrow, particularly on higher ground. Throughout the rest of the week, temperatures are not expected to rise much above freezing and further snow is possible on Wednesday.

Driving conditions are likely to be icy in early mornings and late evenings so motorists are advised to take care. Residents are advised to check out guidance on clearing their own driveways and pavements of snow and ice on www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/winter if they feel it is necessary.

Cllr Stan Waddington, cabinet member for environment, said: “We’ve already seen one of the coldest Novembers on record and it would appear now that winter is really upon us. “While snow is looking likely, at the moment we’re not expecting a huge amount so sending our gritters out just before it’s due to hit the county is the best option.  “As always, we will do our best to keep the roads open but motorists are asked to take care when driving and residents are urged to do their bit to look out for elderly or vulnerable neighbours during this freezing weather.”

•    At the risk of wintry weather we salt 1,000 miles of roads making up our ‘Primary Network’ of vital routes to larger settlements and access to emergency services. This is around a third of our road network.
•    In severe conditions if time and resources are available a ‘Secondary Network’ made up of regular bus routes may also be salted.
•    We don’t salt the A417, A419, A40 or M5 motorway, which is managed by the Highways Agency.
•    We don’t just salt when the weather gets cold – we use expert weather advice and scientific evidence to determine when we should send the gritters out.
•    Each community has volunteers operating snow ploughs or telling us about conditions in outlying villages during very severe weather.

Contact
Issued by Lisa Bonnell, Gloucestershire County Council Media Team, 01452 425226

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