Highway Maintenance
Winter Maintenance Policy
1. Relevant Legislation
1.1 It is the County Council’s duty to meet the requirements of the Highways Act 1980, Section 150 41(1)(A) which places a duty on the authority to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, that safe passage along a highway is not endangered by snow or ice.
2. Policy
2.1 The County Council will manage its Winter Service in accordance with its ‘Winter Maintenance and Severe Weather Emergency Response Plan, which is reviewed annually.
2.2 The objective of the County Council is to initiate and manage established procedures for dealing with weather emergencies, enabling as far as reasonably possible, the safe movement of highway users throughout the County.
2.3 It is the County Council’s policy, as far as reasonably practicable, to attempt to maintain bare road surfaces at all times, as far as the resources available for undertaking this work permit.
2.4 At times of predicted low temperatures, salt will be spread to help prevent frost or ice forming on main thoroughfares. When snow falls and accumulates on highway surfaces, ploughs and other appropriate plant will be used to remove snow and salt and/or grit will be spread to help melt the snow and to prevent ice forming.
2.5 As the total highway network cannot be treated simultaneously within the resources available to the County Council, priorities have been established to determine treatment levels.
3. Priorities for Winter Maintenance treatment
3.1 All public highways within the County shall be allocated to one of four groupings depending upon the level of traffic carried and the strategic importance of the highway to the road network and the community.
3.2 Priority Treatment Categories
Priority One routes: to be treated as routine pre-salting, in advance of any forecast frost, ice or snow.
Priority Two routes: to be treated only where there is prolonged and persistent frost or ice which is expected to continue, or following snow.
Priority Three routes: to be treated only after significant snow has fallen.
Community Routes : to be treated only where there is prolonged and persistent frost or ice which is expected to continue, or following snow.
3.3 Network Hierarchy Treatment Categories
Priority One
includes:
main traffic routes ("A" class roads)
main access routes to important industrial and large educational establishments
main access routes to major accident and emergency hospitals, and to important emergency service locations
roads used as major bus routes - exceeding 50 buses/day urban 25 buses/day rural
roads passing through major shopping centres
other routes busy during peak traffic periods
routes to prepared rest centres (during a declared weather emergency only)
routes to critical infrastructure such as key military establishments
Priority Two
includes:
single access routes to villages
roads near other schools
roads used as other bus routes
roads to other hospitals
roads to minor fire and ambulance establishments
roads passing through other shopping centres
major pedestrian precincts and pedestrianised areas
Priority Three
includes:
access routes to farms and to other isolated dwellings
residential roads
other pedestrian precincts and busy footways
cycletracks
all other public highways
Community Routes
Include:
routes to all other schools not covered by existing Priority One or Two routes
routes to larger community facilities and healthcare centres
Version No: 1.1
Effective from: 14/10/2010
If copied or printed, this document should be treated as uncontrolled and correct only at the date it was copied or printed.
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