Councils attacked over gritting 'failures'

As many as 75 per cent of members believed local highway authorities had not done very well or not performed at all well in gritting minor roads this winter, the AA/Populus survey showed. Just two per cent thought councils had done very well in coping.

Councils' efforts on local main roads got a less frosty reception from the AA members, with 81 per cent saying the treatment of these roads was acceptable or carried out reasonably well or very well.

But 86 per cent of those polled were critical in some way of local councils' clearing of ice and snow from pavements, with 65 per cent saying the efforts were "no good at all".

Drivers from southern and north-west England were most critical of councils' gritting of minor and major roads. But 92 per cent of drivers in Northern Ireland were satisfied with their local authority's efforts.

Those least happy about how pavements were treated were those from northern England.

AA president Edmund King said: "It's going to take some time before a thaw sets in between motorists and councils following this winter's gritting failures. Three-quarters of AA members were not impressed with local authority efforts in gritting or salting

"Despite the prolonged cold spell and salt rationing, we believe more could have been done to keep local roads and pavements safe in some areas."

Mr King went on: "We warned of our concerns over salt supplies in the autumn and we want to see more resilient winter weather plans for the future."