About 11,500 tonnes of salt, 24 road gritters, 21 pavement gritters, and about 180 Council staff are ready to grit Aberdeen’s priority roads and pavements this winter.
The gritting team are often travelling to work on untreated roads to ensure the squad of gritter vehicles are treating the primary routes – the main roads which are almost half of Aberdeen’s roads - before 7.30am.
Gritting operations have been on standby since the start of this month however road temperatures have been above 0C so there has been no need for them yet.
It is not possible to salt every road, pavement, and cycleway around the city at the same time so they are prioritised, with main routes given top priority. Roads are split into primary, secondary, and other routes, and pavements/cycleways are split into priority one routes and priority two areas. Once primary roads and priority one pavements have been treated, gritting then starts on secondary routes and then other roads where resources allow.
Aberdeen City Council Co-Leader Councillor Ian Yuill said: “The weather has been very mild so far and we hope this continues into the winter but of course living in Scotland always means there’s a possibility of snow and ice which can last for long periods.
“Even in difficult winter conditions, our dedicated staff go above and beyond their duty to help people while doing their best to grit roads and pavements however we cannot be everywhere around the city at the same time.”
Net Zero, Environment, and Transport Committee vice convener Councillor Miranda Radley said: “Our early morning gritter drivers are usually driving to work themselves on untreated roads before they start work at 4.45am to ensure the main roads are gritted for most people before the morning rush hour.
“We want to keep roads open and residents safe and I’d encourage people to keep a close check on weather forecasts, plan their journeys, adhere to police and travel advice, and look up information at Get ready for winter | Aberdeen City Council."
Early morning and standby gritting operations will run through to late March which can be extended depending on road conditions and if forecasts are showing wintry weather.
The Council’s budget for winter maintenance is £1.57million which was approved to ensure that traffic on the city’s main roads keeps moving.
The primary routes which are treated first are the main transport routes through the city and include major bus routes, roads around Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, and roads near emergency services locations. The primary routes make up almost half of Aberdeen’s roads network and are never impassable unless there are abnormal conditions. These are usually gritted early morning from 4.45am to 7am to ensure they are salted before rush hour.
The primary routes receive 24/7 coverage. For route planning, the primary routes can be viewed at Get ready for winter | Aberdeen City Council.
The priority one pavement routes cover some of the busiest pavements around the city centre. Priority two pavements – the rest of the city – are treated on area basis, with a priority given to high footfall streets and areas around public facilities, medical facilities, and shopping areas. There are also large community salt bins are at 20 convenient locations around the city along with grit bins, and the big community salt bags which are being delivered to households across the city for community use.
More information, including the locations of the large community salt bins, can be found at Get ready for winter | Aberdeen City Council.