Sandwell Council invests £1m more grit lorries and snow ploughs to tackle winter weather
A new fleet of grit lorries and snow ploughs costing taxpayers £1million will be hired by a Black Country council on the back of the unprecedented weather.
Sandwell Council will contract out nine grit lorries and five snow ploughs from April until 2022, in an expansion of its Winter vehicles.
The move comes after the Black Country was hit by heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures, which left motorists stranded due to the hazardous road conditions.
Councillors approved for the local authority to hire out the vehicles at its latest Cabinet meeting.
Councillor David Hosell, cabinet member for highways and environment, welcomed the move, saying it will help in future scenarios to clear roads during periods of snowfall.
Welcoming the move, he said: "I am pleased the council has agreed the new contract.
"As demonstrated during the bad weather from Friday to Tuesday, in order to maintain a good usable and safe road network, we have to have the equipment to do the job.
"Our last contract has come to an end and the new vehicles will do this.
"Our residents have high expectations, and our staff and equipment allow us to meet to those expectations to the best of our abilities."
The council currently has a fleet of nine Winter vehicles, but its existing fleet will end in April, with the new contract coming into effect until the end of the 2017/18 financial year.
The new vehicles will be fitted with tracking and hardware and auto-salting.
They will be on call around the clock - 24 hours each day - during the Winter season from October 1 to April 30.
A council report said the new fleet of vehicles would be contracted out until 2022, with there being an option to extend the hire arrangements for the winter season running until April 2023.
Council bosses estimate the cost of the project will be £1,000,000, which will come from its Highways budget funded by taxpayers.
Over the past week, Sandwell Council has been sending out its gritting teams around the clock to make roads as safe as possible.
Snow is not forecast over the weekend, but temperatures are set to linger around 3C during the night time.
