Councillor defends gritting teams after pedestrians forced to crawl on Causeway Side in Linthwaite

Jan 15 2010 by Barry Gibson, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

A COUNCILLOR has defended gritting crews after at least 10 cars were damaged on an icy road.

Pedestrians were reduced to crawling on their hands and knees as black ice hit Causeway Side in Linthwaite.

Jez Gunnell, who lives on nearby Hillside View, counted 10 damaged cars on a 150-yard stretch of Causeway Side.

But Colne Valley councillor Nicola Turner told Mr Gunnell that gritting crews were doing all they can with dwindling salt stocks.

Conditions were particularly bad on Causeway Side on Tuesday, with Examiner reader Robert Cartwright photographing pedestrians having to crawl across the icy street on their hands and knees.

Mr Gunnell, 48, was amazed at the state of Causeway Side when he ventured out at 2pm on Tuesday.

He said: “I couldn’t even walk on the road, it was completely covered in black ice. I saw 10 damaged cars in 150 yards and I’m sure there were many more further down the street.

“It was absolute carnage.”

Mr Gunnell added that residents on one of the side streets off Causeway Side had taken matters into their own hands. He said: “People on Pennine View had put their bins across the street to stop cars coming along there.”