‘Budgets before safety on roads’ says ex-gritter

Dec 27 2008 by Hazel Ettienne, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

‘Budgets before safety on roads’

PUBLIC safety is being put at risk as winter maintenance budgets are slashed, it is claimed.

A Colne Valley man, who spent 40 years working for Kirklees highways, says there will be chaos in the district when any sort of bad weather happens.

John Shaw, of Holyoake Avenue, Linthwaite, was one of six people in charge of gritting and snow ploughing between 1974 and 1986. He retired two and a half years ago.

Mr Shaw acknowledged some reorganisation was required but said the aim was now to do work on the “cheap.”

He said a computer now told teams how many grammes per square metre should be spread, but this was a classic case of people sat behind a desk dictating the method of work.

He added that the whole of Huddersfield was already done from Honley depot and adding Colne Valley gritters to the queue would only make it longer.