Plans to cut gritting on smaller roads have been reversed in an unexpected twist.
Calderdale officials have U-turned on a proposal to prioritise gritting the area’s busiest roads after the Examiner’s report earlier this week caused a backlash from concerned residents and motorists.
The 12-month pilot scheme would see dozens of smaller, rural roads dropped from coverage during icy periods to save money.
But the authority now say they’re listening to concerns and have even shelled out for more grit bins.
Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Economic Development, Cllr Barry Collins said: “In a small number of cases there are roads which we will need to include as they meet the criteria. In other instances we have received significant public concern in some areas where local people have reported that the changes are having a significant impact upon their daily lives.
“We want to listen and respond as fast as we can. We are proposing some immediate changes to the pilot policy to restore secondary roads on the network to the list of roads to be gritted. This will have financial implications and will not be immediate, as it means we will need to obtain additional gritters for our new in-house team, however these will be put into service as soon as they arrive.
“We have also ordered 200 grit bins, which will arrive by the end of next week.”
A final decision on the policy will be made by the Cabinet in summer 2018.
