Brrr-ace yourselves for the return of winter

Reporter: KEN BENNETT
Date online: 09/02/2010

Oldham is bracing itself after weather forecasts warned of snow tomorrow.

Temperatures plummeted across the borough last night and traffic on the notorious A62 was reduced to a crawl after a smattering of snow, backed by ice conditions, brought drifting.

Saddleworth restaurants, still recovering from the aftermath of the recent blizzards, reported customers stayed at home.

One said: “People coming across the tops from Huddersfield have cancelled, simply because they were not sure they could get back home. Travellers got such a scare with the downturn in weather last time some customers did not want to take a chance.”

The Met Office and other forecasters predict the risk of wintry showers later in the week, below freezing at night under clear skies.

Councillor Mark Alcock, cabinet member for environment and infrastructure, said: “Based on latest weather forecasts, we are expecting snowfall in the borough on Wednesday — but plans are in place to monitor and manage the situation.

“Salt Cell, the Government-run committee, is still in control of salt supply on a national level.

“They decide who needs supplies the most and we are expecting two further deliveries from them before midweek. So long as we receive those, we are confident that we have sufficient grit stocks to cope with the weather that is currently anticipated.”

Meanwhile, the council has allocated additional staff to its Pothole Mole service to deal with the after-effects of recent wintry weather.

Potholes, created by freezing temperatures, have become a huge problem nationwide and the local authority is working flat out to identify and repair them .

The problem, called freeze thaw happens when water gets inside a road surface and freezes it then expands — widening the crack.

When the ice melts even more water seeps into the crack and further exacerbates the problem as temperatures freeze again.

The process can eventually lead to large chunks of tarmac being ripped from the road surface and cause a serious hazard for motorists.

Councillor Alcock said: “We upped our deployment on the Pothole Mole service from two teams to three last week and this will remain the case for the foreseeable future. These teams are currently journeying around the borough, identifying and filling local potholes.

“Recent record low temperatures have made this problem worse than ever and we are mindful that further severe snowfall could lead to a substantial deterioration in the situation.

“Our Pothole Mole team has more than 3,400 roads to monitor so, in order to assist us with this reactive maintenance, the reports we receive from members of the public are absolutely vital.

“They provide information which will help us assess the worst areas and get a clearer picture of the damage caused by the cold spell.

“We will also have two additional staff dedicated to checking all sites where utilities companies have recently done reinstatement works.

“If these have pothole problems — and that has happened inside a two-year period after the work was completed — utilities companies must pay for this work. This will save money for all local Council Tax payers.”

Dangerous holes should be reported to the Pothole Mole service’s special hotline number: 0161 770 1685.

Reports outside normal office hours will be taken by the council’s First Response staff and passed to Pothole Mole teams.