Sponsored by
City roads ‘ready to face the winter’ says Wakefield Council
April snow fall causes chaos on the roads around the outskirts of the city of Wakefield during early morning rush hour on 4th April, 2012. Picture taken at West Bretton. w8378b214
HIGHWAYS bosses said they are ready to face the winter.
Wakefield Council’s highways manager Graham West said the council’s grit supplies were healthy ahead of the cold season, in which heavy snow has ground the city to a halt in previous years.
Last year winter maintenance cost the council about £800,000, but Mr West said they had been able to save around £40,000 on grit this year by working in partnership with other West Yorkshire agencies.
He also urged people to register their interest in becoming snow wardens again this year to help tackle the snow, and confirmed that they would be insured for helping to clear snow.
Mr West said: “We’ve been able to save money on salt and have a healthy supply chain, and I have not been asked to make any savings on winter maintenance this year. We are well-prepared.”
The council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting heard that Wakefield compared poorly to the national average in the National Highways & and Transport Survey, which surveys people for their opinions on road maintenance in their area.
But Mr West said available funding had allowed the council to keep roads maintained but not make significant improvements.
He said: “Most areas in West Yorkshire scored about the same in the survey, and in Wakefield there was a slight improvement over last year.”
There was a sudden onslaught of winter weather in November 2010 and more than 8,000 tonnes of grit needed to be spread as the district faced one of the harshest Decembers on record.
People can call 0845 8506 506 to register an interest in becoming a snow warden.
Email to a friend
Print this page- HS2 to bring 150 jobs but what’s the cost ?
- Eric Pickles blasts council free-sheets as “knock off imitation”
- Police and martial arts club offer ladies-only self defence classes in Normanton, Wakefield
- Apprentice Francesca Mcduff-Varley will ‘fight to the death’ to impress Lord Sugar
- Unemployment still at highest since the 1990s
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Wakefield
Sunday 19 May 2013
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 10 C to 17 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 10 C to 18 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: North
