Fixed
Sheet ice
Sent to Northumberland County Council less than a minute later. FixMyStreet ref: 8449892.
Street never gets gritted. It is sheet ice, I have 2 disabled children one is blind. This is a serious safety concern as she has fallen and hurt herself. I started sliding into my neighbours house and my husband had to move my car which was just wheels pinning. School taxi is struggling to move and took four attempts today. This has been an issue since wednesday and happens everytime it is snow/ice weather.
Updates
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Thank You for your report. We will review this report at our earliest opportunity.
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Winter Services Operations.
The Precautionary Network underpins the service and has been developed to ensure that where possible no one living within Northumberland is more than five miles from the treated network.
The precautionary network is pre-defined and comprises Primary and Secondary Routes
In built-up areas (defined as settlements with a population greater than 1000) salting will be carried out on selected parts of the network such that residents will not have more than a mile to travel to reach the salted network. In addition main bus routes will be salted, as will link roads having steep downhill approaches (1 in 10 or steeper).
In non-built-up areas salting will be carried out on routes such that residents of small villages (defined as greater than a population of 100) will not have more than five miles to travel to reach the salted network.
You can view our Priority 1 Primary Gritting Routes here: Precautionary Gritting Routes
How Salt Works
Salt comes in grain sizes of 10mm and is spread at rates between 10 to 40 grams per square metre depending upon the forecast road surface temperatures and if snow is forecast or is falling. When spread on top of ice or snow, each grain will begin to melt the surrounding ice working its way outwards. As it melts the ice, it forms a pool of salty water, which in turn helps to melt the surrounding ice and so on. Without any traffic to move the salt and salty water around and mix it into the thawing ice, the melting process can take some considerable time. Where snow falls on top of salt then it begins to melt the snow from beneath. Again, vehicular movements will speed up this process. However, the first vehicles over the snow will actually compress the snow into ice in much the same way as a snowball is created. If there is little traffic, or very slow moving traffic, then a layer of ice may form on top of the road
More information can be found at Winter Services
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Thank you for your enquiry regarding the gritting of the U8127 and your request for it to be added to a Priority 1 Primary or Priority 2 Secondary Gritting Route. I would like to provide some clarification on how gritting priorities are determined and why the U8127 cannot be included in these categories. In line with the County’s Winter Maintenance Policy, gritting routes are designated using a hierarchical system based on road classification, traffic volume, strategic importance, and operational capacity. Priority 1 – Primary Routes These routes are the County’s main arterial roads, carrying the highest traffic volumes and connecting key population centres. They also provide critical links for emergency services and public transport. As they make up approximately 34% of the total road network, it is essential that treatment resources remain focused on these roads to maintain safety and mobility during severe weather. Priority 2 – Secondary Routes These include other significant A, B, and some C-class roads, as well as important bus routes. They are treated when widespread snow or ice is forecast and account for around 20% of the network. The U8127 is a minor road and does not meet the criteria required for inclusion in either Priority 1 or Priority 2 routes. Upgrading it would compromise our ability to complete treatment of higher-priority roads within required timescales, which could reduce overall network safety during winter conditions. Although it cannot be added to a Priority route, the U8127 does benefit from grit heaps placed at key locations to help manage localised icy conditions. These allow residents to treat the road when necessary. We understand that winter weather can cause inconvenience, and we will continue to monitor conditions across the network and respond where resources allow. However, based on current policy, road classification, and operational requirements, we are unable to upgrade the U8127 to a Priority 1 or Priority 2 gritting route.
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Grit heaps have now been replenished.
This report has now been closed. Thank You
This report is now closed to updates from the public. You can make a new report in the same location.