Storm Goretti is expected to cause widespread damage as it hits the UK, with warnings for high winds, snow and rain.
Numerous weather warnings have been issued across the country, including a rare red alert covering Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly on Thursday (January 8), with the Met Office warning that strong winds could pose a threat to life.
Cold temperatures and severe weather are expected to continue into the weekend, leaving many people questioning whether it is safe to travel.
Councils have started to strengthen roads to cope with icy conditions, but local authorities in England tend to prioritize main roads, leaving most residential streets at risk of slippery conditions.
That might be all well and good if the main road at the bottom of your estate is clear, but if you can’t get your car to travel the required quarter of a mile down the road, you might decide that the junk isn’t of much use.
Many residents feel their council is not doing enough to strengthen the road. (Pennsylvania)
Here, Yahoo News looks at how councils decide which roads to grit, and whether you can check which roads have been gritted and which haven’t.
How to check if your road has gravel
The answer to this question depends largely on where you live in the country.
The UK government maintains a website that allows you to check where in your postcode a postcode has been removed.
However, entering your postcode will take you to your local authority’s website – and different councils provide different amounts of information on what is being implemented.
The government can direct you to a website where you can view information about local gravel operations. (UK Government)
For example, if you enter a postcode that is covered by Derby City Council, you will see a website about their rough and tumble locations and you can click to see a detailed map of the exact locations their rough and tumble trucks will visit.
Other councils including Sheffield, Dorset, Essex and Lincolnshire provide similar information and maps.
But local authorities such as Kirklees and Calderdale do not provide this level of information.
If your local authority does not provide details on their website, it does not mean that the information is not available elsewhere.
You can always check the social media pages of your city council or local councilor to see if they have any information to offer.
An interactive map produced by Derby City Council shows where they plan to fortify. (Derby City Council)
Are there fewer sanded roads?
Cash-strapped city councils are looking to save money where possible, but tough cuts are often hotly contested by voters.
Unison unions called for cuts to hard-working services in October when they called for more money to plug a black hole in council finances.
Under the Highways Act, local authorities have a legal duty to ensure “so far as is reasonably practicable” that “the safe passage of traffic on highways is not threatened by ice or snow”.
The Traffic Management Act also “requires authorities to take all reasonably practicable measures to effectively manage the network to keep traffic flowing”.
This includes planning for unexpected events such as “unforeseen weather conditions.”
Some councils produced maps showing their difficult routes. (Pennsylvania)
It is up to councils to decide how they interpret their duty to ensure roads are open as far as “reasonably practicable”.
There are over 225,000 miles of roads in the UK and repairing each one of them during the winter would cost hundreds of millions of dollars each year.
Most councils have decided to ensure their main roads are clear and some have designated secondary roads which they will clear if they can.
The bulk of gravel trucks and the wide spread of grit means they can be impractical on the UK’s many narrow, windy roads.
Some councils provide gravel bins on residential streets so that locals can sand fill the roads if necessary.
Although the council has a responsibility to ensure roads are gravelled, many residents complain they are not doing enough.
In 2024, Calderdale Council was forced to back down over proposals to cut its winter gripping scheme.
Many councils provide gravel bins for residents to use to spread sand on their roads. (Pennsylvania)
They say their scheme could save £300,000 a year, but residents and businesses claim it will leave them in dire straits.
Dudley Council is under pressure to reverse its plans to cut grit bins by almost half and increase the time between refills after Storm Goretti brought icy conditions to many.
Safecote, a business that helps councils cope with winter, says it has helped South Lanarkshire and Carmarthenshire reduce routes from 23 to 20 and save £250,000.
However, other councils have rejected criticism from residents about their sandblasting operations.
Liverpool City Council has shared extensive information on X about its sanding operation after residents complained there was not enough road sanding.
Other councils have also made significant efforts in recent years to boost their multi-million pound investment in plans to deal with snow and ice.