Keeping Cardiff moving through the winter
Cardiff Council has plans in place to ensure the city is kept moving during severe winter weather such as tomorrow’s predicted snow.
Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning‚ Highways & Transportation, Councillor Ralph Cook said: ““A robust plan has been put together to make sure we do everything possible to keep Cardiff moving through the predicted snow tomorrow and through the winter. The winter maintenance plan has been in place since the start of November and will run until the beginning of March, or longer depending on weather conditions.
“You can help the Council by being public spirited, for instance assisting any vulnerable neighbours you are aware of and by doing your bit to help your community if we experience heavy snowfalls. Information is readily available on the Council website which gives the advice you need, with the Snow Code providing step-by-step guidance on what to do when you are clearing snow from pavements and other public areas.”
As one of several measures to improve the Council’s resilience during a future snow event, a salt barn has been built and by the end of November, Cardiff will have approximately 6,000 tonnes of salt available. This is approximately 50% more than the amount of salt that it used during the winter period two years ago and is greater than the Welsh Local Government Association recommendation.”
Resources are on stand-by 24 hours a day during the winter period (between November and March inclusive) to ensure that salting can be undertaken promptly once it is needed. The Council uses a fleet of 12 vehicles to spread salt on the roads following prescribed routes and vehicles are also fitted with ploughs to help with clearing snow from roads if needed. The pre-salting operation usually starts within one hour of the decision being taken to start salting and takes approximately four hours to complete.
Out of more that 600 miles of roads across Cardiff, a priority network of routes have been identified following a consultation with transport providers, the police and emergency services and will be salted when freezing conditions are forecast.
This network is a little under half of the total adopted highway within Cardiff and comprises Principal Roads, B Roads, some C Roads, and other non-classified roads [namely Bus Routes].
A list of roads that will be pre-salted can be found on the Council’s website: www.cardiff.gov.uk/winterweather
Several cycle routes will be treated where they form part of the carriageway which is part of a designated salting route. In situations where the forecast conditions do not require all of the prescribed network to be salted, only the Principal Roads, roads identified as colder than average and known wet areas will be treated. This will be just over a quarter of the adopted highway across Cardiff. It is important that all road users take extra care at times when winter weather conditions are being experienced.
A limited network of footways will be salted when ice or snow is forecast. A priority list of footways has been developed in accordance with guidance from the Institute of Highways & Transportation. The highest priority, which is based on footfall, are the main pedestrianised areas within the city centre. These will be pre-treated when local surface temperatures are forecast to fall below zero. Further details on footway salting can be found on the Council’s website: www.cardiff.gov.uk/winterweather
Following a snow event, the Council’s objective will be to restore its Principal Roads and remainder of the treated network, and also the priority footway areas in the city centre to a serviceable condition as soon as practically possible.
The Council’s priority will be the Principal Roads and core bus routes throughout the city. Once the Principal Roads and core bus routes are returned to a serviceable state, the remainder of the pre-treated network will be tackled.
More than 500 Salt containers are provided across Cardiff where a need has been identified on routes that are not located along the pre-salting network. These salt containers are provided for use by members of the public and also the emergency services on the adopted highway.
The locations can be found on the Council’s website www.cardiff.gov.uk/winterweather. Each container is checked and refilled prior to the start of the winter season and any that are found to be damaged are replaced as necessary.
As well as keeping the website up to date with the latest service information during severe weather, the Council has also provided snow information and tips to help keep members of the public and their family safe during periods of bad weather. For more information including the Welsh Governments Snow Code, please visit at www.cardiff.gov.uk/winterweather,
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