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Grit gangs look forward to the thaw
GRITTERS, who are becoming exhausted after weeks of salting and gritting through the night, were out again last night.
To conserve stocks of salt, only emergency routes - as per Buckinghamshire County Council's emergency plan drawn up last week - were salted last night. Two runs were made from 3am.
However more roads, on the busiest routes, were being gritted this morning.
The council says it has enough reserves to salt the emergency routes - including between hospitals - again in the early hours of tomorrow morning.
After that temperatures are expected to remain above freezing until least Monday, and with rain forecast for the next three days the council is not expecting roads to be icy.
With only 150 tonnes delivered on Monday, stocks are running very low indeed. The council normally has several thousand tonnes of salt in stock.
A council spokeswoman said: "The men are really exhausted, they've been working long shifts, coming home to get some sleep, and then going out again. But we think the worst is over."
Meanwhile fifteen tonnes of salt was stolen from a council depot at Saunderton near Milton Keynes at the weekend.
The spokeswoman said: "It's an inconvenience and we could do without it. It's not sociable behaviour in these difficult times."
Members of the public have also been seen taking salt and grit from bins on the highway and using it on their own drives and pathways.
Councillor Alison Pirouet, of Chesham Town Council, said the council was filling the bins regularly but for use by residents on roads but that some were taking it by the bucketload for their own driveways.
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In the 23 years I have been living in bucks, not ONCE did I realise that Saunderton was ANYWHERE NEAR Milton Keynes! How ignorant of me?!!
Not to blame this time, got this info from BCC's press office.
Not the first time BCC have demonstrated their lack of ability to find their way to their backsides (use whatever colourful term you wish here) with both hands.