Council chief criticises public over gritting 'failures' during big freeze

Published on Wednesday 27 January 2010 21:57

A SENIOR official at one of the Scottish councils hardest hit by the big freeze yesterday accused the public of having "unrealistic expectations" about the ability of road-gritting crews to cope with the worst conditions for 30 years.

Jim Irons, the executive environment director of Perth and Kinross Council, revealed that maintenance staff were subjected to personal abuse and "unreasonable demands" for action from angry residents as crews battled to deal with the dramatic snowfalls which swept the country.

He told councillors that householders could have done more to help themselves in tackling the build-up of snow and ice throughout the region.

Mr Irons, in a report on the council's response to the big freeze in December and January, told members of the enterprise and infrastructure committee: "It is self evident during the recent prolonged period of severe weather over the whole of the UK, that the strategy that is designed to deal with marginal conditions has been unable to meet the often unrealistic expectations of some members of the public."

He warned: "Milder winters have allowed public life to continue almost unhindered for the most part, with only periodic, short-term impacts, and public expectations of what a council can reasonably do to prevent disruption to normal activity in periods of extreme weather have grown to unrealistic levels – often encouraged by negative media coverage."

Mr Irons explained that the council's gritting crews had been working 13-hour shifts for up to seven consecutive days in the battle to keep main routes open as temperatures fell as low as -18C.

The council's roads service had been gratified by the many messages of thanks they received. But Mr Irons continued: "Many of them have also suffered instances of personal abuse and unreasonable demands for action, and being personally blamed for the inconvenience caused by the weather conditions."

He told councillors that, in contrast to the UK, countries that routinely experienced significant snow falls over a prolonged period adopted strategies which were more dependent on vehicles and pedestrians adapting to the conditions rather than trying to prevent the conditions from developing in the first place.

"The adaptations in these other countries include the mandatory use of snow tyres, and individuals using appropriate footwear and clothing, which is often not the case here," said Mr Irons.

"People in these countries know they will have weeks of snow cover and take their own measures to prepare for it. In addition, businesses and individuals more readily understand the need to help themselves and each other. In many of these countries it is an offence for someone not to clear the snow outside their property.

"In the UK there are often media stories of people being reluctant to clear their footways in case they become liable for any injuries. This is a myth that has no basis in fact.

"Early self help will often avoid a build-up of snow and ice that becomes much more difficult to deal with later."