Gritting to be cut back on 25 roads in Inverness area
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GRITTING is to be cut back on more than 25 roads in the Inverness area.
The decision by councillors this week to downgrade certain roads for gritting priority is part of Highland Council’s region-wide plan to save £440,000 through reductions to the service.
Lochalsh Road and Telford Road are to be downgraded from primary to secondary routes, while some – including parts of Fairfield Road, Carsegate Road, Longman Drive and Temple Crescent – are categorised as "Others" and will only be gritted after 9am "as resources and conditions permit".
Community services manager Tracey Urry said told the council’s Inverness area committee this week that councillors were unhappy about certain routes being re-categorised but they acknowledged savings needed to be made.
Glynis Sinclair, SNP councillor for Culloden and Ardersier, was pleased to see that "the stink" she raised about earlier plans to cut gritting of the Smithton Park area had been heeded and the proposal now removed from the cuts plan.
She challenged service director to give an "unqualified assurance" that the safety of the public was still first and foremost on the council’s mind.
She said: "Has the council carefully thought about the legal consequences for its liability to its citizens regarding a duty of care it owes as a roads authority to provide and maintain a reasonable standard of winter roads maintenance. That’s my big concern."
William Gilfillan, director of community services, gave this guarantee. He said the roads being downgraded would still be gritted, but not until later in the day.
Inverness West Liberal Democrat councillor Alex Graham also successfully argued for a road in his ward to be removed from the cuts plan.
At an earlier debate on the issue last month he said it would be dangerous to downgrade gritting on Assynt Road at Kinmylies as it led to shops, Kinmylies Medical Practice and the primary school.
Council leader Margaret Davidson said her rural Aird and Loch Ness ward was being hit by the cuts but she considered the new plan was "reasonable".
She was pleased that farmers will be asked to help out in north Loch Ness and a gritter would be re-routed to cover south Loch Ness but said the community would need finer details on this plan. She said the winter maintenance policy would be "thoroughly reviewed" for next year. This will happen in April.
"I do not want to see anymore gritting lorries taken out of the service or any more reductions to the service," she said. "Our communities tell us this is the priority. Every community tells me if you need to put up the council tax Margaret then do so. Until we know how brutal our funding situation is going to be later this year none of us can commit to anything but I do know what people’s priorities are and what they are encouraging us to do."
DOWNGRADED STREETS ARE:
From "primary" to "secondary":
Lochalsh Road
Telford Road
From "secondary" to "other":
Abersky, Torness
Braefield, Glenurquhart
Broallan, Balblair
Buntait, Glenurquhart
Creag Scorrie, Balblair
Gartally, Culnakirk
Glenlia\Trinloist, GorthlecK
Kerrow Road, Strathglass
Loch Killin, Whitebridge
Torcroft, Glenurquhart
Upperton, Glenurquhart
Carsegate Road South
Carsegate Road
Fairfield Road – from Junction of Hawthorn Drive to Junction of Dulnain Road
Harrowden Road
Hawthorn Drive – from Junction of Rangemore Road to junction of Fairfield Road
Laurel Avenue – from function of Caledonian Road to junction of Dalneigh Road
Telford Gardens
Wyvis Place/Glendoe Terrace (Part) – From junction of Kilmuir Road/Glendoe Terrace to junction of Benula Road
Ardness Place
Temple Crescent
Longman Drive (Part) – loop off Henderson Drive
Cantray - Tornagrain
Dalcross Industrial Estate
Burn Brae, Culloden – spur roads
