Weather
Buckinghamshire roads to freeze further when rain hits (From Bucks Free Press)
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Buckinghamshire roads to freeze further when rain hits
11:01am Wednesday 23rd December 2009
RAIN will hit south Bucks this afternoon but will turn instantly to ice, causing more hazardous conditions on the roads, the Met Office has warned.
The heaviest rainfall will come in rush hour, around 6pm, and motorists going away for Christmas tomorrow morning also face perilous conditions.
Met office spokesman Sarah Davies, based in Maidenhead, said: “We have got some showers coming up from the south, they will be falling as rain but the problem is it will fall on to cold road surfaces.
“There might be a little bit of snow on the usual places over the high ground but it's not the snow that's the problem, it's the ice.
“Because the roads are very cold and still have snow and ice the rain freezes instantly."
Although air temperatures may be above zero degrees Celsius, the rain could freeze due to the lower road surface temperature.
Mrs Davies added: “Rush hour today could be interesting and tomorrow as well could be nasty.”
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Many parts of Buckinghamshire have been as low as minus seven degrees Celsius this morning.
However, temperatures are expected to rise, with drier conditions and a grey day forecast for Christmas Eve.
Hopes of a white Christmas look dim and most of the remaining white stuff is expected to have melted come the big day.
Mrs Davies said there will be a “slow thaw”.
“It will slowly get milder and the roads will warm up during Chrismas day. The snow will probably have melted by Christmas day,” she said.
Meanwhile, drivers have been assured there is “sufficient” grit left in the reserves.
Buckinghamshire County Council's transport localities team leader Si Khan said gritting had taken place on primary routes last night at 7pm and at 4am this morning, while secondary roads are currently being done.
The latest weather forecasts will be evaluated before a decision is made on further gritting this evening, she added.
“If it's necessary we will be out there,” Mrs Khan said.
The council said there is in excess of 1,000 tonnes in each of the four Buckinghamshire depots – Handycross, High Wycombe, Amersham, Gawcott and Griffin Lane, Aylesbury.
Between 20 to 50 tonnes is used per route.
Val Letheren, Cabinet Member for Transport said: "Our teams have worked tirelessly and are doing everything humanely possible to keep roads open.
"We are literally battling the elements as gritting is not effective below -8 degrees and less effective between -4 and -8 degrees and we are recording levels as low as -10 degrees.
"Abandoned cars are also making it harder for us to clear roads - both we and the Police are urging people not to just abandon their vehicles but to find a safe place and to leave their contact details with the vehicle."
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Your Say YourBucks
erm, ermsville says...
11:40am Wed 23 Dec 09
Tracyfry28, High Wycombe says...
11:50am Wed 23 Dec 09
I live in Totteridge and the road has only been gritted once, and it was not even put down slowly driving at 40 mph in a residential street is appalling.
Get it together High Wycombe Council and do your job, we pay you to do in the 1st place
Judge 2, high wycombe says...
11:54am Wed 23 Dec 09
I was driving up New Road yesterday morning and the road was clear of snow / ice. However the problems were caused by abandoned cars.
erm, ermsville says...
12:21pm Wed 23 Dec 09
Tharus Bond, Flackwell Heath says...
1:08pm Wed 23 Dec 09
Plus ça change..., Wycombe says...
1:17pm Wed 23 Dec 09
Still at home, we would be able to see immediately what the position was everywhere...
Perhaps you could obscure faces and anything identifiable and personal like that or transmit only distant images.
Despite the radio and phones the dissemination of information about a developing situation like that is not as good as it could be for the public.
The last snowstorm was faster than all of us.
We need faster information to make better decisions NOT to go out in our cars if at all possible.
It was all very extreme and unnecessary whatever the cause.
Just a thought.
Plus ça change..., Wycombe says...
1:19pm Wed 23 Dec 09
Tracyfry28, High Wycombe says...
1:34pm Wed 23 Dec 09
So no it has never been wrong, just people think that it is one forecast for the week no try 4 different in one day.
Take note and check daily!!!!!!!!
Gyno, Beaconsfield says...
5:19pm Wed 23 Dec 09
“Mrs Davies added: “Rush hour today could be interesting and tomorrow as well could be nasty.”
Interesting? You XXXXXXX idiotic woman, it’s not interesting for those of us that have to travel through these un-gritted roads struggling to get to work every day at 7am every morning.
I am an insulin dependent diabetic and consider myself well prepared for the most severe weather conditions carrying warm clothing, blankets, food, drink and a full tank of fuel, but this is not the answer. I should not have to sleep in my car. The local council must improve their performance and do what we pay them to do. I suggest they read the weather forecast online more often.
Having recently received the “Buckinghamshire Times, Winter 2009” with the cover showing new gritting Lorries (Eight in number commissioned to help the “Transport for Buckinghamshire - TfB” and with a sub-heading “True grit –Buckinghamshire gets ready for winter” simply beggars belief.
The magazine quoted that the county’s stockpiles of salt have filled its salt barns to capacity with 10,500 tonnes of salt and also a reserve for emergency conditions.
I appreciate that the main “A” roads are relatively clear, but would like to ask the local council leaders why the local roads have not been treated, having had plenty of notice from the Meteorological Office.
Other countries must be laughing their socks off at our pathetic incapacity to deal with our not so unusual British weather conditions.
Not Impressed.
Mediawatcher, Aylesbury says...
5:57pm Wed 23 Dec 09
Stop WHINING! The roads are gritted and have been for some time. Grit does not deal with freak snow showers....I'm not sure we pay the council to perform miracles.
If you want snow cleared then you better pack a shovel in your boot next time.
michael healy, high wycombe says...
5:58pm Wed 23 Dec 09
Why dont they put all the money they get through fines for cars put back into the roads and stop telling us lies about they have no money. They get every houshold to cough up council tax and or business rates every month so how on earth can they say they have no money????
We know you have money OUR money and all we want is a proper service. IF you cannot do the job i suggest you stand down and let a private company do it on a retainer scheme. I bet every road would be gritted and salt put down then!
Travelbug, High Wycombe says...
6:55pm Wed 23 Dec 09
michael healy, high wycombe says...
7:48pm Wed 23 Dec 09
I have had to take John Lewis PLC to county court for not fixing my Toshiba Teleivision Properly under their so called 5 years Guarantee. Its WORTHLESS, just a selling point of SALE JARGON.
I sent them my reciept and then heard nothing! Then i complained and they sent someone out to collect my tv and gave me a loan tv untill my one was fixed.
I then got a call to say my tv was fixed. When they dropped it off i noticed straight away it had a crack on the top casing and a piece visibly missing. Not only that they said they wanted to take their tv back. I refused to accept my broken tv as the picture was not proper as it should be, pixels were missing and the fact that it was damaged.
I sent a letter to their managing director and they had the audacity to say they wanted £600 for the loan tv because i didnt give it back. Anyway, i issued a law suit againt the Managing Director of the whole company, in his name. That made them sit up and listen a bit but they had it changed at court to J L PLC.
They refuse to give me £1300 back which i paid for the tv and say its over 5 years old but cannot prove this at all. Hence i will be fighting my case in High Wycombe county couRt in Feb 2010
SO JOHN LEWIS PLC HIGH WYCOMBE BRANCH.
YOU ARE NOT SO GOOD AFTER ALL.
I WOULD LIKE TO HEAR FROM OTHER PEOPLE OF HIGH WYCOMBE WHO HAVE HAD A SIMILAR EXPERIENCE AT THE JOHN LEWIS HIGH WYCOMBE BRANCH WITH REGARDS TO THE "SO CALLED"5 YEAR GUARANTEE ON THEIR TELEVISION SETS
bakerbill, High Wycombe says...
8:27pm Wed 23 Dec 09
Plus ça change... wrote:Good ideas Plus ça change , also bring back our local radio station Swan FM ,which gave detailed High Wycombe road condition reports Three counties radio is OK but not anywhere near as good as Swan FM, which was closed recently .
What about making all the live CCTV images of Wycombe's roads available to us online at times of gridlock or public emergency?
Still at home, we would be able to see immediately what the position was everywhere...
Perhaps you could obscure faces and anything identifiable and personal like that or transmit only distant images.
Despite the radio and phones the dissemination of information about a developing situation like that is not as good as it could be for the public.
The last snowstorm was faster than all of us.
We need faster information to make better decisions NOT to go out in our cars if at all possible.
It was all very extreme and unnecessary whatever the cause.
Just a thought.
And start using the Old CB radios you always had good information of the road conditions if you had one in the car in the 70s -80s .
We need more detailed reports of local / national road conditions , a lot of pain , inconvenience and money would have been saved if we had such information in the last week .
limajuliet, Chalfont St Giles says...
10:13pm Wed 23 Dec 09
RAngry, Holmer Green says...
2:04am Thu 24 Dec 09
I refused and at 1am after several kind youths lifted my vehicle out of the Escape Pit, I was given coffee by a kind resident of the Hill and eventually continued my journey down the hill as I could not drive up, due to the sheet ice there.
I had ended up in the Escape Pit having to brake hard and swerve sharply to avoid a Child at 9pm who had fallen from his sledge in front of my vehicle!!
That is what Amersham Hill a main vehicular arterial traffic route had become a delightful sledging and snowboarding playground by 9pm!!
I finally managed to drive back up Amersham Hill, following a grit lorry at 6am on Tuesday morning. Despite every hill pointing North out of High Wycombe Town, being either Closed by the Police or by vehicles completely blocking them or by sheet ice.
A Hazlemere man died between 7pm and 9pm, lying in the street at Green Road behind the Royal Grammar School - waiting for an Ambulance - which could also not get up any of our ungritted hills.
How many more people have to die waiting for Ambulances which cannot not get up the sheet ice main arterial routes round High Wycombe???
I imply no blame whatsoever on the Ambulance Service, who do a magnificient job with their limited resources.
But Bucks County Council/High Wycombe District Council where were the road gritters between 7pm and 2am????? Or whatever later time they finally gritted Amersham Hill???? I know that none passed, laying any grit whatsoever, thoughout that 7 hours of hell.
Here we are 2009 Climate Change on us and it took me 11 hours to drive what should have been a half hour round journey of approximately 6 miles.
What an absolute disgrace!! Those people who recently voted for our current Councillors should take note!! Things will only get worse with this incompetent bunch!!!
And to now claim they hold sufficient grit stocks... H.mmm?? I was told some of their grit lorries had broken down.
Whatever, that is simply not good enough and I would suggest that the various Councillors responsible for this disgraceful lack of service/disservice to the TaxPayers - and the untimely man's death, to his Widow - should hang their heads in shame and RESIGN, along with the Heads of Department responsible for this shambles!!!
brachyura, says...
6:52am Thu 24 Dec 09
.
Have they iced over?
SDJones, Hazlemere says...
8:11am Thu 24 Dec 09
Kadoogan, Wycombe says...
8:21am Thu 24 Dec 09
Dr Truth, High Wycombe says...
9:41am Thu 24 Dec 09
bmcconalogue, Hazlemere says...
9:47am Thu 24 Dec 09
You go out unprepared, as does everyone else. You inevitably hit each other or get stuck. You block the road, the gritters get stuck, the roads don't get gritted making it a spiral into gridlock and people having to sleep in their cars or abandon them.
What happened to common sense?
Showers to freeze over roads
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Welwyn Dowd, Wycombe says...
11:38am Wed 23 Dec 09