BURY Council has stockpiled 2,500 tonnes of gritting salt in preparation for plummeting temperatures this winter.

The council’s winter service operates from October to April and gritting teams have already been out to treat roads 18 times.

Decisions to grit, or not grit, are based on the open road winter forecast service provided by the Met Office.

The council has 16 drivers and four duty officers on a rota throughout the season, with each driver on standby for four nights, followed by 12 nights off.

All drivers have been fully briefed and hold the Winter Service City and Guilds qualification.

Councillor Alan Quinn, Bury cabinet member for the environment, said: “Our winter service team is ready for any cold snap that comes our way and the service runs right the way through the night when conditions demand it.

“We have a dedicated team that do a superb job to help keep Bury on the move during the winter months.”

It takes around five hours, with four vehicles, to spread on average around 20 tonnes of salt per grit run across 295 roads and streets which cover 200km across the borough.

Cllr Quinn added: “We can only treat the roads on our gritting routes – we cannot grit roads on request, as our efforts must be concentrated on keeping the main roads clear.

“We also don’t have any extra salt bins and the salt we provide in them is not for private use. For private driveways, residents should purchase their own salt.”

The council uses Safecote salt, which is coated with molasses, because it sticks to the road surface better and is less corrosive.

When the full winter service is in operation, treatment is provided to all roads on the gritting routes. During periods of prolonged severe weather it is sometimes necessary to reduce the routes to essential routes only in order to conserve salt stocks.

Essential routes are defined by the council as those which provide access through the borough, help maintain movement across the country, while locally maintaining access to critical services such as hospitals, ambulance stations and key points in the food and fuel distribution networks.

For more information about the winter service, including a list of treated roads and streets, salt bin locations and advice on clearing ice and snow from pavements, visit bury.gov.uk/gritting.

In the event that severe ice or snow delays bin collections, advice will be posted online at bury.gov.uk/bincollections

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