Update on how the snow is affecting services

Dear All

Please find attached below the latest update I have from Road Services.  I have been in touch several times a day to see how roads in my ward can be dealt with quicker and have obtained the following information.  Please be assured that I am pressing for every effort to be made to clear the area as quickly as Road Services can manage.

Since the start of the current period of wintry weather, the gritter / snowplough vehicles have been working their way through the priority system, but owing to the frequent snow showers, have had to continually revert back to the Road Category 1 Routes. These are the important principal roads and major bus routes; roads to hospitals, ambulance depots and fire stations. Category 1 pavement routes are also being treated, which consist of the City Centre (high footfall routes) and the high level areas in Balerno, Gilmerton and Liberton.

 

Road Services is presently working through the Road Category 1 Treatment Routes and, once these are clear, will commence treatment of the Road Category 2 Routes prior to any treatment of the Road Category 3 Routes.  The majority of residential streets in Fountainbridge / Craiglockhart ward are classed as Category 3, whilst steep roads serving large areas such as Craiglockhart Avenue and North Meggetland are in Class 2.

 

As a result of the heavy snowfall, additional resources are being mobilised to assist in the task of clearing all streets as quickly as practicable. A significant number of sub-contractors and equipment will be hired, and 90 refuse collection staff redeployed to clear snow and grit pavements. The larger proportion of these extra resources will be deployed in the South, South-West and West areas of the City which have been hardest hit, and these arrangements should take effect from 1^st December. The outlying villages such as Balerno, Currie, Ratho and Juniper Green will be targeted and the first priority will be routes to shopping areas, GP surgeries and other high-trafficked pedestrian areas.

Every effort will be made to clear all roads and pavements as quickly as possible, however, as your constituents will appreciate, our top priority must be to keep the main routes open during these times of heavy and repeated snowfalls.

Update as at 1630hrs, 1^st December

Road services and transport

• Staff are working round the clock to keep the city's main roads clear.
• Extra staff have been allocated to work on snow clearing. However, workers are experiencing difficulties with the exceptional levels of snow on roads and pavements as well as obstacles such as abandoned cars.
• Mechanical plant i.e. JCBs are being used to excavate and remove snow to gain access to many of these routes
• The Council has used over 2,000 tonnes of salt between 25 November and 1 December. Supplies were standing at around 5,000 tonnes, this morning.

Refuse and waste collection

• Bin lorries are operating a limited service, mainly in the city centre and main roads. However, refuse workers are helping with snow clearing.  Any bins not collected as scheduled will be collected as soon as possible.

Further information

·         Please check the Council website at http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/severeweather, http://twitter.com/Edinburgh_CC and Radio Forth for immediate updates. Immediate travel news will be available at http://twitter.com/edintravel

 

Kind regards

 

Gordon

 

Councillor Gordon Buchan

Scottish Conservative Councillor for Fountainbridge / Craiglockhart Ward

 

For Information During Winter:

Garden waste pick up dates are changing for winter. Garden waste wheelie bins will be collected every 4 weeks during December, January and February.  Christmas Tree recycling will be undertaken in January.  See edinburgh.gov.uk for details.