Wiltshire road gritters used 50% more salt over the 22/23 winter

They covered nearly 60,000 miles of road

Author: Aaron HarperPublished 10th May 2023

Over the 2022/2023 winter period, road gritters in Wiltshire made almost double the number of gritting runs than the 2021/2022 winter.

A fleet of 24 gritters made 82 runs last winter, compared to 41 in 2021/22.

This caused 50% more salt to be distributed on our roads, with 7,836 tonnes of salt being used to keep our roads safe, compared to around 5000 tonnes the winter before.

Cllr Caroline Thomas, Cabinet Member for Transport and Flooding said: “This winter was particularly busy and exposed our winter maintenance teams to tougher conditions than previous years.

Our teams and contractors have once again done a great job to help keep our county’s road users and residents as safe as possible, with crews treating an incredible 59,130 miles of road.”

The increases reflect the poorer weather experienced over the winter period, with periods of freezing conditions lasting several days, while there was also heavy rainfall and ground water flooding.

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