In the greater cities and in the busiest towns, we fail to not see roads that have been perfectly prepared for our drivers. Early in the morning, the road salting and snow clearance teams of your local council clear the roads, ready for early morning journeys. This is essential, as some leave their house as early as four am, if not earlier, to start their daily work shift.

The gritting process is an underappreciated job that saves us all time and is beneficial for both our time and our safety. In the more urban areas, generally gritting isn’t a problem, as it is completed as and when needed. As well as this, the more urban areas often gather less snow – due to the slightly warmer weather, which we can thank industry for, as they create warmer temperatures.

There is a certain ‘priority list’ that prioritise routes that give access to hospitals and fire stations, as well as other important facilities while it is snowing, used by the majority of councils in the United Kingdom. In Kent, for example, the primary salting routes cover approximately 30% of all roads in Kent, including all A and B class roads, in addition to busy commuter roads. After the primary routes, if weather in Kent has prolonged heavy frost, widespread ice or snow, the council consider salting an additional 15% of the road network.

From these statistics, you can gather that many roads are left unattended, sometimes 70% of the road network. More often than not, these roads are in the more rural areas. Fortunately, grit bins are available for all county councils, however they hold some ambiguity.

“I am confused whose responsibility it is to lay out the grit,” said a local resident in a small village in Kent.

Furthermore, in countryside lanes, the roads are often narrow or too steep, which limits the ability of the local council. The road salting vehicles are wide, which make it difficult for access in the roads of the countryside. Ultimately, the solution to reducing the dangers associated with driving in snowy and icy conditions is to grit your own roads, as a community. This is scarcely being done, but it should be, to benefit everyone on the roads – especially those who are visiting, and not used to countryside lanes.