Notts: Gritting teams ready for action

The teams have been on low-risk standby since the beginning of October, as is normal, but the start of November saw them swing into full 24/7 standby status.

They will remain that way until the end of March next year – or later if necessary.

Although the weather has been much milder compared to the same time last year – when gritters salted the county’s roads for the first time on October 26 – the council is leaving nothing to chance and has been preparing for this winter since the end of last year.

The council’s four salt barns are full to the brim meaning that it has more salt stockpiled in the county than ever before – some 12,000 tonnes more than official Government recommendations – putting Notts in a strong position for dealing with the worst winter conditions.

Overall, the council has the capacity to store around 22,000 tonnes of salt – around 18,000 tonnes of it under cover.

“Our winter planning goes on all year round and we are confident that we are in a stronger position than ever to deal with whatever the weather throws at us,” said Coun Kevin Greaves, chairman of the transport and highways committee.

“Like everyone, we’re keeping our fingers crossed that the coming winter won’t be too bad, but we have to be realistic and plan for the worst.

“Rest assured, we will be ready to swing into action as soon as any bad weather arrives.”