11:07am Tuesday 22nd December 2009
By Oliver Evans
GRITTING bosses today insisted they did all they could to salt roads ahead of yesterday’s travel chaos.
Buckinghamshire County Council roads boss Eric Meek said all A and B roads were gritted twice yesterday – but salt had a limited affect in freezing temperatures.
People queued for hours as ice made major roads inaccessible. Some abandoned their cars and took up shelter at three centres in High Wycombe.
Many blame the council and the chaos led to a storm of angry comments on The Bucks Free Press website.
We have also been inundated with emails hitting out – but also praising good samaritans and public services such as the NHS.
Sue Koch, of Kingsley Crescent, High Wycombe wrote: "What is the county council doing in Wycombe?
“At the moment we have large areas where people can not get cars off their estates.”
Click here for all the news from last night and readers’ comments.
The council’s policy is to continuously re-grit the roads, Mr Meek said today.
But the 14 gritters were stuck in traffic as queues formed throughout Bucks and drivers abandoned their cars, he said.
And Mr Meek said gritters struggled to get to and out of depots at Handy Cross, High Wycombe and London Road, Amersham.
When snow first hit on Thursday it began gritting A and B roads only, but began minor roads on Sunday.
Mr Meek said these major roads were gritted yesterday morning and vehicles then moved onto minor roads.
They were sent back to major roads when it was clear more snow was on the way, he told The Bucks Free Press this morning.
He said: “It was sheer volume of traffic – there were cars being abandoned everywhere.”
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Trucks have worked overnight as traffic cleared, he said.
Mr Meek added: “There was plenty of salt, it was purely the volume of traffic.”
The council had 10,500 tonnes before the snow came and now has 1,000 to 1,200.
Another order will be delivered after Christmas, Mr Meek said, and external contractors were brought in last night to help.
Click here for the council's priority routes.
But Mr Meek, area manager operations at Transport for Buckinghamshire, said: “After minus four, salt starts losing its effectiveness.
“There wasn’t a huge amount of difference the salt was making.”
And he said: “A lot of the problems are the drivers who are not used to driving in these conditions. They accelerate – that is the worst thing you can do.”
The department had not suffered cuts from the cash-strapped council, he said, and added it was the worst conditions he had seen in 15 years.
Mr Meek said: “There is people phoning in complaining left, right and centre.
“You have just got to accept what they are saying. They were stuck in traffic, they want to vent their anger at people. We have to put up with it.”
Traffic was delayed down the A40 London Road in High Wycombe because drivers were unable to climb hills to neighbourhoods such as Tylers Green and Totteridge.
But Amersham Hill in the town was also closed – meaning drivers had to abandon their cars or drive via Beaconsfield.
Mr Meek said key routes off London Road - Marlow Hill, Amersham Hill, Hammersley Lane, Cock Lane, Micklefield Road, Hatters Lane and Bowerdean Road - had been gritted twice yesterday.
Councillor Valerie Letheren, cabinet member for transportation on the Conservative-controlled council, said: “We don’t make snow.
“All I can say is we have been working around the clock to keep the network open.”
Asked if the council has done all it could, she said: “I think it has. I can’t do anything more than use all my gritters.”
Five members of the public were given overnight shelter at High Wycombe Fire Station. Crew members got them back to their cars the next morning in 4x4s.
A further eight firefighters also stayed overnight as they were unable to get home.
Watch manager Eamonn Eddowes said: “We couldn’t leave them out on their own. We brought them in and helped them out.
“The Swan Theatre gave us a big pan of soup and we also had baked potatoes.”
He added: “In my 27 years as a firefighter I have never seen anything like it. Cars were being abandoned all over the place.”
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