Leading Highland councillor admits local authority's winter resilience performance 'needs to improve'
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A leading Highland councillor has spoken about the pressure the gritting teams have been under due to the recent cold snap, saying a review is under way but ultimately the authority needs to 'redesign and resource improvements'.
Councillor Ken Gowans, chairman of the council's economy and infrastructure committee, said: “It is fair to say that the winter maintenance team has been stretched during the recent cold snap and bins have not been replenished as often as I would’ve liked.”
A number of residents in parts of the region have been concerned that their grit boxes have not been refilled leading to extremely slippery paths and driveways after partial thaws and refreezing.
Some have gone online to vent their anger that they lack grit boxes while others complained that though they do have them they were not replenished after a particularly cold December.
As a result of the experiences of some locals this winter, Councillor Gowans said that work is already scheduled to look at where the service can improve.
He said: “Following on from this experience, I am meeting with the team to review our winter resilience scheme – this will include the resources at its disposal in line with budget pressures and how the service can make improvements to service our communities.
“The winter resilience performance needs to improve but the council needs to be able to redesign and resource those improvements.”
He said: “Anyone can request a grit box be installed. The preferred sites for these are at the top of slopes to allow the grit to dissolve and to flow downhill.
“There is no doubt that gritting teams have been stretched this year but making every effort to replenish emptied bins whenever possible.
"We are not responsible for the roads that have not been adopted by the council.
“Any member of the public can request a refill for a grit bin via the council’s website. They can also contact their local councillor.
"I know that I have directly requested referrals for a large number of bins over the past few weeks although not always successfully as resources have been stretched.
"The grit has been paid for and distributed free by the council.”
He added: “It is worth noting that the council can only provide bins for certain areas but in other areas it is up to the housing developer to provide the bins and maintain them – this is especially true in new developments.”
