7:23pm Monday 21st December 2009
By James Nadal
AN ENRAGED fitness instructor has called for residents to withhold their council tax for a month to express their outrage about “treacherous” roads.
Melanie Carvell, 34, of Butler's Court, Marlow said she was “incensed” after an officer hung up on her today when she demanded answers on why key roads and paths were still iced up.
Melanie, who works at the Marlow Club in Fieldhouse Lane, said: “It was treacherous on Friday after the snow, cars were sliding up the High Street.
“Everyone knew it was coming so why didn't they get the grit out beforehand? It was the volume of roads that hadn't been touched that annoyed me. Station Road was like an ice rink and pedestrians were looking at the cars in terror.”
The mother-of-two got through to Buckinghamshire County Council, which is responsible for gritting roads, on Monday, having called a number of times since Friday.
She wanted to ask why some of the most heavily used roads – including Institute Road and Station Road - had not been gritted but was refused answers by an officer who then put down the phone, she said.
“It was the sheer arrogance of the person that I wasn't entitled to know why these things weren't done. I came off the phone incensed,” Melanie said.
“I think a petition should be started to say we are not paying tax for a month. I have watched three senior citizens fall over, I think it's disgusting.”
Institute Road and Station Road were not on the priority salting lists, Buckinghamshire County Council said, although High Street, West Street and Spittal Street had all been gritted.
High Street was gritted at 7pm and 11pm on Thursday, the night the snow began to fall, at 7pm the following two days, and twice on Sunday.
However, due to temperatures plummeting to minus 10 degrees Celsius, gritting had become less effectual, Buckinghamshire County Council's transport localities team leader Si Khan said.
“The problems that we have currently is it's not normal weather conditions that we are dealing with at the moment for December – it's an extreme case. It was minus ten last night.
“It's not as effective as it would be if it was above minus eight, it becomes less effective, we are working against nature here. We are doing the best we can.”
She added: “It's not that Marlow is forgotten but on the primary routes we concentrate on the A and B roads – the main arteries in and out of the town.
Mrs Khan said she was not aware of the phone call but was “sorry to hear” about it and would investigate, as all calls are recorded.
The priority list for roads in Marlow is: Burroughs Grove Hill, Little Marlow Road, Chalkpit Lane, Queens Road, Seymour Court Drive, Dean Street, Spittal Street, Frieth Road, West Street, Henley Road, Parkway, Oxford Road, Pound Lane, Wiltshire Road and Wycombe Lane.
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