More cuts ordered in road gritting

Transport Secretary Lord Adonis said he was acting "decisively" in demanding that councils should cut gritting by up to 50 per cent compared with a week ago.

Councils and the Highways Agency had already been ordered to reduce their use of rock salt by 25 per cent as national stocks reached crisis levels, and now must cut back further – leaving the prospect of real problems on increasing numbers of minor roads.

Salt supplies will continue to be directed towards areas where they are most needed. Parts of Yorkshire, including Calderdale where drivers are still advised to avoid high level roads, are likely to stake a strong claim despite the relative thaw since the weekend.

Forecasters said temperatures would continue to drop below freezing overnight while more heavy snow was forecast last night in the south-west of the country and in Wales.

Continuing problems for the region were emphasised when an ambulance became stuck in heavy snow at Egton on the North Yorkshire Moors and had to be rescued by members of the Humber coastguard in a 4x4.

Tributes were also paid yesterday to a Yorkshire pensioner who fell to his death down a snowy embankment. James Maw, 79, of Longley, Sheffield, had been on his way to a local shop.

Mr Maw, known to his friends as Bill, was discovered by an assistant from the shop who was alerted when his worried wife telephoned to find out if he had been in for his newspaper.

His family paid tribute to the former Stanley Tools factory worker. Son Alan, 48, said: "He worked seven days a week to look after his four kids. My only hope is that he died of a massive heart attack. I can't bear the thought of him lying there in the snow by himself."

The incident comes just days after widow Mary Priestland, 90, was found frozen to death in her back garden in Goldthorpe, near Barnsley.

Speaking after the latest meeting of the Government's "salt cell" – set up to co-ordinate supplies – Lord Adonis said the overall transport situation was "as good as it could be", with all major roads open apart from some routes over the Pennines.

"I have directed the Highways Agency to conserve the maximum possible salt usage each day, consistent with maintaining the continued safe operation of the national motorway and trunk road network," he added.

"In order to avoid individual councils running out and to retain the ability to help any who get into difficulty, local authorities will also need to conserve significantly more than the 25 per cent agreed last week, by prioritising local networks as necessary."

The chairman of the Local Government Association's transport board, David Sparks, said the country must work together to conserve salt stocks in the worst cold snap for almost 30 years.

"Councils will keep working night and day so people can make essential journeys to get food and medical care," he said. "Tough decisions will be made to ensure key roads are kept clear so people can get to hospitals, schools and the shops."

But the Tories said the Government had failed to learn the lessons of last winter, when many councils faced similar problems.

Shadow Transport Secretary Theresa Villiers said: "It was clear after last February's cold weather that the country was almost wholly dependent on just two salt suppliers, and that when salt imports dry up as harsh weather conditions hit Europe the two domestic producers just cannot pull salt out of the ground quickly enough to meet demand.

"The direct result of Labour's failure to broaden the range of salt suppliers on which the nation depends has led to the current situation."

TAXMEN GET TOUGH OVER SNOW RELIEF

Farmers may be fined by the taxmen if they use tractors running on red diesel to grit snow-blocked roads.

HM Revenue and Customs told the National Farmers Union not to use the lower-tax fuel when gritting.

Under current rules farmers can only grit roads if using tractors powered by white diesel – the fully-taxed diesel for trucks, vans and cars.

Farmers are entitled to use red diesel in their tractors on their own farm tracks or on public roads to clear routes of snow to allow feed deliveries or milk collections.

But if intending to spread grit on these cleared roads as a preventative measure against the snow, they must use white diesel, meaning farmers must drain their tanks of the red diesel.

Geoff O'Connell, a parish councillor in Belford, Northumberland, said farmers were furious. and added: "Doesn't anyone at HMRC realise that we are experiencing a national emergency?"

He said expecting farmers to go home to drain fuel tanks and then re-fill with fully-taxed diesel before carrying out any other activities for their friends and neighbours was "unforgivable, heartless and totally impractical."