Latest Bulletin from Gloucestershire Highways.

Posted on By Town Clerk

Current Weather Conditions:
All areas: A few snow showers at various points of the county, overcast with temperatures currently just below freezing.

Current/Recent Treatments:

East:  Ploughing on key routes continued until 21:00/22:00 (20/12/10), and recommenced from 04:00 this morning. Gritting being carried out on Cirencester Key Routes this morning. (Route C7 Only – due to breakdown when other routes were completed)

West: Key route grit of 15g just being completed in west. Additional ploughing will commence on key routes. Farm ploughs assisting in rural areas.

Central: Key route grit of 15g carried out at 23:00 on 20/12/10. Scouts across the area were out in the early hours and additional salting and ploughing currently being carried out at hazardous locations on the key routes.

Proposed actions during the day/night:

All areas: Treatment decision for the next 24 hour period will be made following receipt of the forecast due at lunchtime.

All areas: Treatment decision for the next 24 hour period will be made following receipt of the forecast due at lunchtime.

Network Risks:   

  • East: All treated routes passable with care. Untreated network very icy, extreme caution required
  • West: All treated routes passable with care. Untreated network very icy, extreme caution required.
  • Central:  All treated routes passable with care. Untreated network very icy, extreme caution required.

www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/winter

Freezing Temperatures Cause Icy Roads

Posted on By Town Clerk

Motorists are being urged to take extreme care as freezing temperatures cause widespread ice on roads across the county.

Gloucestershire County Council has been out over the weekend and overnight gritting roads to try to prevent ice from forming. Gritting teams were out throughout the day yesterday, treating the roads and ploughing to remove snow, with up to 12 inches falling in parts of the county.

To ensure roads were treated again before temperatures dropped overnight, a second team was brought in during early evening and a complete grit run of all A and B roads in the central area took place at 7pm last night. But when temperatures plummet below -7, grit become less effective. Below -10, grit has no effect at all. Last night, the county saw averages temperatures of around -10 with some areas dropping to as low as -17. This has led to widespread ice forming on the roads with particular problems in urban areas of Cheltenham and Gloucester.

The council already has fleets out around the county, but with temperatures likely to fall to below -7 again, ice is likely to remain on the roads. Cllr Stan Waddington, cabinet member for environment, said: “I completely understand people’s frustrations, but when we’re seeing temperatures as low as -17 no amount of gritting will make any difference. “Unfortunately, grit does not work when it’s this cold and there is simply nothing we can do about that. We will continue to do all we can to keep the roads moving, but I am afraid that there are no easy solutions here. I would advise people to make essential journeys only and to take extreme care if they have to go out in the car and check the forecast before leaving.”

Motorists are advised to stay off the roads if possible, but if you do have to drive, do so with extreme caution.

Tips on winter driving can be found online at www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/winter.

Inspector Keith Fagan, Gloucestershire Police, said: “Due to the current adverse weather conditions we are continuing to advise drivers not to make their journey unless it is absolutely necessary. If you must travel then the first thing I would always recommend is that you allow plenty of time to complete your journey.”

  • Trying to reach a destination within a tight time-scale, especially in poor weather conditions, increases stress and the potential for an incident.
  • Drivers are also urged to prepare their vehicle and make sure it is in good condition before setting out.
  • Make sure that you clear all the snow, ice and misting from your windscreen and other windows before starting to drive. 
  • Keep your speed steady and slow and remember that braking distances can more than double on wet or icy road surfaces.

While the council will do all it can to keep roads free of ice, residents are being urged to do their bit too by helping to clear pavements.

Last year people were worried about liability issues after clearing ice and snow themselves. But new guidance from the government on gritting your own driveways and pavements is now available on www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/winter and people are being advised to ensure they’re prepared before bad weather hits.

Gloucestershire Highways – Adverse Weather Bulletin

Posted on By Town Clerk

Date:    18/12/2010
Time:    14:30
Issued By:    John Kay

24hour forecast: This afternoon will be dull with some intermittent snow. It will remain mainly cloudy overnight, although the snow will largely die out. A few clear spells may develop later. Tomorrow morning will be mainly dry and bright. RST’s will be mostly well below zero with widespread ice.

2 to 5 day forecast: It will remain cold throughout; RST will remain mostly below zero, with widespread ice and hoar frost. Sunday night will be dry, clear spells before patches of fog will form. Monday will become cloudy, with snow arriving in the south. It will stay cloudy overnight with moderate to heavy snow for much of the time. Tuesday will be cloudy with the snow easing through the morning. More snow may arrive from the south by the end of the day. Wednesday will see any snow die out to leave a largely dry day with sunny intervals, although there is low confidence on the timings and intensity of the snow.

Current/Recent Treatments:

  • East:  Key route patrolled since 04:00 and ploughed/salted as required. Ploughing continuing, but due to heavy snowfall A class routes being prioritised.
  • West: Key route patrolled between 04:00 and 13:00, ploughed/salted as required
  • Central: Key route patrolled since 04:00 and ploughed/salted as required. Ploughing continuing in the northern section of the central area. All clear in the south.

Proposed actions during the day/night:
All Areas: Key route grit of 15g at 19:00.

Network Risks:   

  • East: A429 at Fossbridge closed due to RTC involving a petrol tanker, likely to be closed for 3 days. A40 Charlton Kings closed. A436 Seven Springs to Andoversford. Heavy snow means only essential journeys should be considered. Extreme caution required.
  • West: All routes passable.
  • Central:  All routes passable.

Last chance to talk transport

Posted on By Town Clerk

There’s just one week left for you to have your say on Gloucestershire’s next Local Transport Plan (LTP3).
The public consultation into the Local Transport Plan 3 will end on October 14th and anyone who hasn’t already commented is being urged to submit their views.

At the end of 2009, we asked you what the county’s transport priorities for the next 15 years should be through our talking transport consultation. More than 600 people responded and this has helped us shape our plans for keeping the county moving in future. The resulting draft Local Transport Plan 3 (LTP3) sets out Gloucestershire’s transport strategy for 2011-26 including proposals for all types of transport infrastructure and services including walking, cycling, public transport, road and rail.

The overall vision is to promote a safe and sustainable transport system for Gloucestershire. Now we want to know what you think of the draft LTP3. With budgets under pressure across all county council services, it is important that you tell us what your transport priorities are. Cllr Chas Fellows, cabinet member for environment, said: “Managing transport in the county is one of the council’s most important jobs so it’s important that we get it right. “LTP3 will shape everything we do for the next 15 years and this is your last chance to tell us what’s important to you “We’ve already spoken to many of you at our roadshows and many have filled in our online questionnaire, but we want as many people as possible to take part.
“I’d encourage anyone who hasn’t commented so far to do so before next week’s deadline.”

The plan needs to meet national priorities such as improving access to services, tackling climate change, supporting economic development, improving safety, and improving quality of life but the local priorities are chosen by you.

Visit www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/ltp3 to give your views on LTP3.
You can also call 01452 425690 to request a paper version of the questionnaire.
The final plan needs to be submitted to the Government in April 2011.

An inspector calls – road rescue phase two

Posted on By Town Clerk

Have you ever wondered what makes a pothole a pothole? Whether they’re the size of a dinner plate or a golf ball, potholes are still making their mark on county roads so Gloucestershire County Council is keen for people to better understand how we deal with them.

In January, the council launched Operation Road Rescue to tackle the severe damage caused to our roads following the harsh winter. Since then we’ve repaired around 75,000 potholes and carried out more than 250,000 sq metres of patching – enough to cover 60 football pitches. There’s still more to be done to repair last year’s damage and as winter is now fast approaching, our roads are going to come under even more pressure as temperatures drop.

The council is already prioritising its workload to ensure the most serious problems are repaired as soon as possible and this will continue to happen throughout the winter. To ensure people understand how we will be working, the council is launching the second phase of Operation Road Rescue.

This phase will focus on explaining to people how inspections are carried out, how we classify potholes and how we prioritise the repairs. After questions from the public on how we assess road damage and decide what to fix, the council has produced a new YouTube video which helps people see for themselves exactly what we do.

The new four-minute film explains to people what makes a pothole, how they’re measured and why some potholes are not repaired. Cllr Stan Waddington, cabinet member for environment, said: “I know people are still frustrated with the condition of some of our roads. “There’s also confusion about what constitutes a pothole and how we decide which ones to repair immediately and which ones we don’t. “Hopefully the YouTube film will make it clearer to people how we’re working and why we’re working this way.

“The bottom line is that we have to prioritise what we do, firstly to makes sure we target the most serious damage first and secondly to manage costs. “I’d encourage everyone to visit our website and watch the film for themselves.” In addition to the work repairing potholes, the council will be investing in more cost effective solutions to reduce the damage in future.

Surface treatments like microasphalt and surface dressing help to prevent excessive wear and tear and help seal the road from bad weather. This treatment will not be used instead of resurfacing, as roads that are severely damaged cannot be treated with surface dressings.
Safety is our number one priority so any road that is in a dangerous condition will be repaired as soon as possible.

For more information, visit www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/roadrescue .

Scrutiny Committee to Look at Highways Inspection

Posted on By Town Clerk

Gloucestershire County Council’s Environment Scrutiny Committee will be discussing the Highways Inspection policy this week.

The cross-party committee meets regularly to scrutinise decision making and hold the council to account for its actions on behalf of the public.

On Friday March 19th, the committee will gather to hear an update on how road repairs have progressed since the Highways Inspection Policy was suspended following the extreme winter weather.

Cllr Chas Fellows, chairman of the environment scrutiny committee said: “As a scrutiny committee we will be looking very carefully at this issue and asking questions about what has been done. People want to know how the work is progressing and what the council is doing to ensure that these repairs are carried out as quickly as possible. We know that the state of the roads is a top priority for council tax payers and this committee is here to give them a voice. We are a cross-party committee so I am sure it will be an interesting debate that will focus on the real issues and not the politics.”

The Highways Inspection Policy sets out how the council should react to reports of potholes or other defects on the roads. Under the policy, reported defects are inspected and put into a 28-day rolling programme of repairs. But it was suspended at the end of January so the crews could be diverted to fixing the emergency repairs caused during the bad weather as soon as possible.

The suspension was lifted initially until the end of April and the environment scrutiny committee will receive a report which says the policy should be reinstated as planned.
However, the report also explains that the backlog of damage will take a further four to six months to repair.

When the council launched Operation Road Rescue on January 25th a timeframe of six months to repair the backlog was originally estimated so work is progressing as planned. Under Operation Road Rescue, the council has 70 gangs currently repairing around 500 potholes every day and since the campaign was launched more than 18,400 have been filled.

The Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee will meet at 10am on Friday March 19th in the Cabinet Suite at Shire Hall. It is a public meeting so you are welcome to attend.

Issued by Gloucestershire County Council’s media team.

Lisa Bonnell
Media & PR Officer
Gloucestershire County Council
Tel: 01452 425226 / 07805 540422
www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/pressoffice