Gritters around Southport

[ChrisR]

Over the last few weeks we have been very grateful for the drivers of the gritters ( & SMC )

My grip is the speed they drive down the roads. Recently they went down my road 3 times, flashing the orange lights on top of the vehicle. I live on a road with a 20 MPH limit, no one takes any notice of it.

The gritters really belt along, leaving no evidence of grit on the road, have others noticed how fast they travel or am I being pedantic?

[daviebaby]

I've thought that many a time, been out, looked at the Road surface and there's nothing, and yes, they do speed.
I'll bet they often get back to the Depot and still with a full load.

[said]

I've thought that many a time, been out, looked at the Road surface and there's nothing, and yes, they do speed.
I'll bet they often get back to the Depot and still with a full load.

They travel at speed possibly to escape from any verbal abuse!

[silver fox]

Whenever I've encountered a gritter on the roads, the stuff has certainly rattled the side of my car, so there sure as hell is something coming out the, or do some expect a carpet of grit that isn't needed.

[Nick2]

Over the last few weeks we have been very grateful for the drivers of the gritters ( & SMC )

My grip is the speed they drive down the roads. Recently they went down my road 3 times, flashing the orange lights on top of the vehicle. I live on a road with a 20 MPH limit, no one takes any notice of it.

The gritters really belt along, leaving no evidence of grit on the road, have others noticed how fast they travel or am I being pedantic?

(From the BBC...Although it's called grit, what is used on the roads is actually rock salt, which lowers the freezing point of moisture on the road surface, so it stops ice forming and causes existing ice or snow to melt.)

Consequently it doesn't need much, but it'll rust your car if you dont wash it.

[Alikado]

I've thought that many a time, been out, looked at the Road surface and there's nothing, and yes, they do speed.
I'll bet they often get back to the Depot and still with a full load.

The gritters are computer controlled, they distribute the grit depending on road conditions. It also switches off if the the road is not on the schedule, this ensures that the roads near the depot don't end up knee deep in grit and they still have a load in the right area.

[seivad]

Consequently it doesn't need much, but it'll rust your car if you dont wash it.

I can attest to that!

We moved to a rural area in 2016. Winding narrow roads, many aren't even paved, and it's pretty hilly. We get an average of about 12 feet of snow a year, a lot more than we got when we lived South of here. In the South they bombarded the streets with salt. Here they use a mix of 94% sand/6% salt. The salt is just to keep the sand from freezing. It's so much better on vehicles, and I don't notice a difference in driving either. We're not on a sewage system, so there's no worries about sand clogging the storm sewers. I guess that's why they can't use it so much in urban areas.

[shippy]

I can attest to that!

We moved to a rural area in 2016. Winding narrow roads, many aren't even paved, and it's pretty hilly. We get an average of about 12 feet of snow a year, a lot more than we got when we lived South of here. In the South they bombarded the streets with salt. Here they use a mix of 94% sand/6% salt. The salt is just to keep the sand from freezing. It's so much better on vehicles, and I don't notice a difference in driving either. We're not on a sewage system, so there's no worries about sand clogging the storm sewers. I guess that's why they can't use it so much in urban areas.

When we were living in Montreal Canada a couple of years back, my son changed the wheels , looking back , I think the change were wheels with chains. ..to get a grip on the ice.

[said]

When we were living in Montreal Canada a couple of years back, my son changed the wheels , looking back , I think the change were wheels with chains. ..to get a grip on the ice.

Don't they have winter tyres with little spikes in them?

[seivad]

When we were living in Montreal Canada a couple of years back, my son changed the wheels , looking back , I think the change were wheels with chains. ..to get a grip on the ice.

Yep, it's mandatory in Quebec to drive on Winter tyres from Dec.15 to March 15. It's not legal to use chains on passenger vehicles though, but you can use studded tyres

[CYRIL SNODGRASS]

i drive a gritter for lcc and dont exceed 30 mph while actually gritting once the route is selected by computer and the amount of grammage selected to deposit on the highway i have no control of the grit and beacons operating as the compuer decides however i can overide manually when needed.

[ChrisR]

i drive a gritter for lcc and dont exceed 30 mph while actually gritting once the route is selected by computer and the amount of grammage selected to deposit on the highway i have no control of the grit and beacons operating as the compuer decides however i can overide manually when needed.

Thanks for the info, makes sense. Is it the same for Sefton, I see that you drive in Lancashire