Gritty Gritty Bang Bang and Wuthering Ice: Bradford gritters get new names
Local schoolchildren have come up with names for five of the wagons
GRITTING wagons have been given new names by Bradford school children, and now go by monikers including Gritty Gritty Bang Bang and Wuthering Ice.
Schools from across the Bradford district have been involved in a project to name five of the 24 gritter wagons used by Bradford Council to keep the roads clear of snow and ice.
One school from each of the five parliamentary constituencies in the district, were tasked with coming up with the name for one of the gritting wagons which will be gritting the streets in their area – including a new electric powered gritter.
The humorous names have now been revealed, with pupils getting to see the vehicles up close before they finished for Christmas.
Pupils at Thackley Primary School representing Bradford East, came up with the name Clearopathra with a nod to the attractive ancient Egyptian Queen, Cleopatra.
Dixons Primary School pupils, representing Bradford West, went for the name Glittery Ice Machine for the new electric gritter, which is being trialled in their area. The 100 per cent electric gritter, leased from Yorkshire-based Econ Engineering, is funded from Clean Air Zone revenue.
The electric gritter will be integrated into the fleet based at Wakefield Road Depot, and will be treating roads in Little Horton, Great Horton, Wibsey, Woodside and the city centre.
The school representing Bradford South, Southfield Co-Op Academy drew on the cultural heritage of the district and chose Wuthering Ice as the name, referencing author Emily Bronte’s classic novel Wuthering Heights.
Taking inspiration from X-Factor superstars Little Mix, the children at Burley and Woodhead C of E Primary School, representing Shipley constituency, went for the name Grittle Mix.
Steeton Primary School representing the Keighley and Ilkley constituency were inspired by the children’s classic Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, by selecting Gritty Gritty Bang Bang.
Pupils at each of the schools got to see a gritter wagon up close when the council’s Highways staff took them into their school’s car park, some of the pupils were lucky enough to be able to climb inside the cab.
The Lord Mayor of Bradford was able to also visit some of the schools.
The pupils taking part also got to find out about the councils gritting operation, got a board with their gritter name on it and a certificate for choosing the name.
It’s the first time that gritters operating in the Bradford district have been named and it’s hoped that five more names can be added to the fleet next year.
Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Bradford Council’s Executive Member for Regeneration, Planning and Transport said: “Our gritter drivers grit over 700 miles of roads between them across our Priority One Routes, this is over 62 per cent of the whole road network in the district.
“I’d like to thank the children from these five schools for coming up such imaginative names.”