BRADFORD Council has been criticised for cutting back on road gritting after snow and ice caused chaos on the roads.

Following cutbacks the amount of the district’s roads that are gritted by the Council has fallen to 50 per cent, from 60 per cent last year.

Gritting now takes place on 626 miles of Bradford’s roads, rather than on 712 miles in the previous year, saving the Council £71,000.

The move prioritises busy roads and bus routes, but councillors have criticised the changes.

Councillor Jeanette Sunderland, leader of the Bradford Liberal Democrat group, rapped the Council for reducing its gritting coverage, and has said the damage caused by icy roads has cost more than the Council has saved.

She said: “This false economy is absolutely crackers. The cutbacks in gritting saved £71,000, but the accidents alone in Idle and Thackley caused by ungritted roads has probably cost the public purse more money than has been saved.

“I have written to the police and health services to find the true cost. I can only guess what the costs are to the people who were affected.”

Councillor Simon Cooke, leader of Bradford Council’s Conservative Group, agreed with Cllr Sunderland’s comments.

He said: “We know and had lots of reports from right across the district of quite significant roads that were ungritted; I was driving up a road in my village that is a bus route that was untreated.

“It’s not just about cost, it’s about people being killed and other damage being done. All of that is a real concern so I would agree it’s something the Council needs to address.”

Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, executive member for regeneration, planning and transport, said: “By 2020 Bradford Council will be half the size it was in 2010 so like every other service Highways has had to make huge cuts and sadly this includes the number of roads we can grit as part of our precautionary gritting programme.

“This was agreed as part of last year’s Budget and in assessing which routes would have to be cut we looked at traffic levels, road traffic accident records, services present on the route such as hospitals and the alignment and gradient of the road.

“We have 23 gritting wagons and 26,000 tonnes of salt and are still gritting over 600 miles of road every time we are advised of the potential for low temperatures leading to ice and snow and this is actually one of the higher levels of treatment across West Yorkshire. Details of the routes that are gritted can be found on our website where you can put in a gritting request, or call 01274 431000.”

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