Gritters ready to respond to winter weather across Northamptonshire

The county’s 68-strong gritting team is now officially on standby for when the cold weather hits.
Gritters are at the readyGritters are at the ready
Gritters are at the ready

In preparation for the cold weather Northamptonshire Highways held its winter service induction at the weekend.

The county's fleet of 22 gritters are ready to respond and the three depots in Brixworth, Towcester and Wellingborough are now fully stocked with nine tonnes of salt.

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The 2019/20 winter will see gritting routes reinstated across the county following a short reduction in the service last year.

This will ensure that as many roads as possible are kept safe and free of ice and snow and means that, at 43% of the network, Northamptonshire has one of the longest gritting routes in the country and will include every parish in the county having a gritted route in and out to ensure villages remain connected.

1,500 grit bins have been filled and are there for everyone to use on public roads and footpaths.

As stocks run low people can report bins that need refilling via our Street Doctor service

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The gritting teams work hard to keep the county moving during the winter, with 24 hour monitoring from now right through to April.

Northamptonshire County Council cabinet member for Cllr Jason Smithers said: “We’re making sure that we are ready to respond when the cold weather arrives.

"Keeping the county moving during the winter is a huge task and we have to be ready to tackle whatever weather we get.

“Do not be alarmed if you see our gritters out in the next week or so. We always carry out a dry run, especially as we welcome new drivers and changes to the routes.

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“And this year we have asked for suggestions to name the gritters, we’ve had more than 1,000 entries and will be announcing the names soon.” Northamptonshire Highways looks after all of the county’s roads except trunk roads, which are the responsibility of Highways England.

Follow Northamptonshire Highways on Twitter for gritting updates @nnhighways