Never mind a grit bin - just buy a new car, Bradford councillor tells BMW driver

David Robertshaw was told there was a temporary halt on grit bins as part of the council’s cost-cutting measures and that he ought to get a different vehicle instead.

The 63-year-old and his neighbours on Broadacre Way in the village of Baildon have had trouble getting their cars out of their drives and onto the nearest gritted road in the last two severe winters when heavy snow had fallen.

Mr Robertshaw first took the step of contacting Baildon Liberal Democrat Councillor John Cole in February to ask whether it would be possible for their road to have a grit bin.

After not hearing anything, Mr Robertshaw said he spotted Coun Cole in the street last month and stopped him to ask for an update.

In a letter Mr Robertshaw received this week, Coun Cole advised him that as his road was unadopted and therefore not Bradford Council’s responsibility, a grit bin could not be provided. Added to this the Council also has a temporary suspension in place on new grit bins.

But Mr Robertshaw was angered by the letter, which read: “I would point out that coping with snowy roads is something which you possibly should have taken into consideration in selecting where you live.

“A final thought is that, if you anticipate further problems in snowy winters to come, you might consider changing the make of the car you drive. BMWs are notoriously poor in snow – unless you get the four-wheel drive version. A front-wheel drive car might help.”

Mr Robertshaw said: “I was incensed. Over the last two winters when the snow was bad, my neighbours and I had great difficulty getting out of our road on to a road that had been gritted, so I approached Councillor Cole to see if there was a possibility that we could have a grit bin. A rude and very condescending letter was the outcome.

“It appears that, in his opinion, we should all move house and get rid of our cars if we have the misfortune to own a BMW.”

Mr Robertshaw, who has had two hip replacement operations, said: “In the last couple of years there have been times where we’ve had to abandon our car and neighbours have bought grit themselves. I just wanted to see if we could have a grit bin.”

Coun Cole claimed Mr Robertshaw had approached him in “a very discourteous manner”.

He said: “If he had approached me courteously, he would have received a courteous reply. Perhaps Mr Robertshaw should reflect that he should treat people as he would wish to be treated.

“I have been elected as a representative of the people of Baildon and not Mr Robertshaw’s office boy.”