Cambridgeshire’s gritting crew will be spotted driving across the county this week, as they carry out a trial run ahead of winter.
As part of Cambridgeshire County Council’s preparations for winter, the fleet of gritters and quad bikes will be out on the roads tonight (Monday 16 October), Wednesday and Thursday evenings this week.
The salt domes and barns have already been filled with 10,000 tonnes of rock salt ready for the start of the cold season.
This dry run is an essential part of the run up to winter - the trial run is carried out to make sure the drivers re-familiarise themselves with the routes, gritters and any alterations, as well as making sure there are no problems with the fleet.
Buzz Ice Year and David Grittenborough are just two of our 37 gritters, including one Guided Busway gritter, which will be on the roads from 6.30pm onwards across the county. The quad bike twins will also be working on cycle routes in Cambridge City.
All vehicles will be travelling slowly with warning lights to easily identify them to all road users. No grit will be used for the test run across these two nights.
Councillor Alex Beckett, Chair of Cambridgeshire County Council’s Highways and Transport Committee, said: “Our gritters provide a vital service to help keep Cambridgeshire roads safe throughout the winter months. Our annual dry run is essential for our crews to get to grips with the routes across the county and also to ensure our gritters are at the top of their game ready for the long nights ahead.
“Last year our crews went out 51 times, with many of them working throughout the night and early hours of the mornings gritting the roads.
“As well as our roads we work hard to ensure our villages and rural areas are kept clear and safe and in doing this we are looking for any residents who want to help us.
“I’d like to encourage anyone who is interested in volunteering to help us grit Cambridgeshire during winter months, to visit our website to find out how you and your community can get involved - www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/help-with-gritting/
