5/1/2010 - South Lakeland District Council and County staff get out gritting : Cumbria County Council

South Lakeland District Council has today joined forces with Cumbria County Council to help with the gritting of streets as the big freeze and snowfalls continue.

SLDC staff are being diverted from their usual street cleaning roles to help Cumbria County Council clear streets of inches of compacted ice to get people moving in South Lakeland.

It follows further fresh snowfalls and the hardest and most prolonged winter to hit the whole district in three decades, with forecasts suggesting no signs of abating this week.

The district, the county, the town and parish councils are actively working together to try to address the needs of the community. The responsibility for snow clearing and gritting of the highways is a County Council function. CCC will be deciding where the teams in South Lakeland need to grit first.

SLDC is pleased to be able to respond to a request from the County Council to pool resources in South Lakeland. SLDC and CCC cleansing teams have already started clearing pavements and pathways and will be endeavouring to get to as many side-roads and cul-de-sacs as they can with their resources such as the availability of grit.

In spite of the conditions, South Lakeland District Council isendeavouringto reach as many households as possible with bin collections this week. It has to empty over 50,000 bins every week and due to the severity and changing conditions over the last fortnight, it has been forced to postpone services in some areas.

During the last weeks of December and into New Year, the council has to collect double the amount of waste and the snow and freezing temperatures have resulted in extremely dangerous conditions and delays.

Nick Pearson, SLDC’s Streetcare Operations Manager, explained the council’s refuse wagons had successfully reached many areas by now with some seeing 80% collection rates.

Last week alone, Ulverston and Grange had 65-70% of its bins collected, Windermere and the Lakes 90%, Kendal and the rural areas like Kirkby Lonsdale, Sedbergh and Milnthorpe, got around 60% of its bins collected. The current advice to householders is to utilize their green garden bin to deposit any extra waste and leave it out on the next scheduled collection date.

Mr Pearson, said, “We are making every effort to reach as many areas as we can. Many homes have had their bins emptied and we apologise to those we have not reached yet. We know it must be frustrating and we hope people understand that the severe weather has affected our ability to carry out the service to the high standard people are used to 52 weeks of the year. People quite rightly want to know when their bins are going to be emptied and we will do all we can to keep them updated through the media and our website. As the adverse weather conditions continue, we are likely to see more disruption before we can get back to business as usual but we will be doing our utmost to get as many properties collected as we can.”

Mr Pearson added that many of the council’s waste collection vehicles weigh between 24 tonnes and 26 tonnes. As well as being automatic–drives which reduces the control drivers have, they are often far heavier after loading which can make them liable to overbalancing and skidding. The council cannot take the risk of injuring people or property.

The crushing mechanism that takes place when rubbish is emptied into the wagons could cause theHGVsto start moving and sliding on compacted ice - increasing the risk of collision with the public, property and their cars, as well as making it unsafe for drivers and staff bringing wheelie bins to the vehicles.

The recent conditions has also meant many thoroughfares and streets are also lined with more cars than usual, which has drastically narrowed the access in and out for large lorries trying to get through on their rounds.

In cases where no bin collections can be made, staff will be diverted to help out with gritting but rounds are continuing as usual in those areas that the council can reach.

People are being urged to recycle as much as they can and those householders who feel safe and able to, and are desperate to get rid of their recyclables can take them to any of the recycling bring sites or the Household Waste RecyclingCentresat Canal Head, Kendal, Morecambe Road, Ulverston, Rothay Holme, Ambleside and Guide’s Lot at Grange-over-Sands. All other recycling collections will commence as soon as the backlog of domestic waste has been cleared.

SLDC would urge people to enter into the community spirit during the adverse weather conditions and keep an eye on elderly relatives or neighbours who may need help and support at this crucial time.

For all gritting enquiries please contact the County Council Highways Hotline on 0845 609 6609 or check the website www.cumbria.gov.uk

For the latest advice on waste collection, people should check the council’s website on www.southlakeland.gov.uk

or call the SLDC Customer Contact Centre 0845 050 4434.