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Requests to grit more Harrogate district roads during winter dismissed

Thursday, 15 August 2024 15:26

By Thomas Barrett, Local Democracy Reporter

A North Yorkshire gritter (Image: North Yorkshire Council)

We might be in the height of summer but North Yorkshire Council has rejected a host of requests from residents to grit more roads around the Harrogate district during the winter.

The council looks after one of the largest road networks in the country at more than 9,000km, with most routes in rural locations that can feel the brunt of cold weather during the winter months.

Council gritting crews are on call 24 hours a day from October until the end of the winter season.

For the 24/25 season, the council has allocated a huge budget of £8.3m for winter services on roads.

This includes gritting ahead of snowfall and ice to ensure that traffic can keep moving.

Each year, the council receives requests from residents and local councillors to prioritise new roads that could be added onto its usual routes.

There were 13 requests in the Harrogate area this year, with many related to roads in Nidderdale, including Careless House Lane near Brimham Rocks, Menwith Hill Road and Dacre Pasture Lane.

There was a request from a resident of Moor Close in Killinghall to grit the road as the resident’s son has a carer who visits daily.

Residents living in the villages of Laverton and Heyshaw also said they worry about being stranded during heavy snow.

However, the council’s Conservative executive member for transport Keane Duncan rejected all but one of the requests, arguing the current route priorities were appropriate.

A report did say that officers will check the number and spacing of grit heaps and bins on each of the routes before the start of the winter season.

The one request that the council will take a closer look at came from Cllr Andrew Murday (Liberal Democrat, Nidderdale), who asked that Trapping Hill to Pot Moor High Road near Lofthouse be upgraded to a higher priority route.

Officers said they would review whether the route could be added and if it could be considered for pre-salting in advance of difficult weather conditions.

You can see which roads the council plans to grit during winter using its interactive map here.

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