Icy conditions cause concern on roads (From Cotswold Journal)

Icy conditions cause concern on Gloucestershire roads

4:04pm Sunday 20th January 2013 in News By Sarah Taylor

ICY patches across Gloucestershire are causing concern across the county.

Gloucestershire Highways is continuing to treat key routes and secondary roads as icy patches cause problems after snow and freezing conditions.

Though the weather is not expected to be as bad as at the end of last week, snow flurries are anticipated mainly in the west of the county and the Cotswolds in the next few days and freezing temperatures are set to continue.

The Met Office is predicting a further band of snow may approach the county from the south west on Tuesday morning, but this could turn into sleet or rain.

Highways teams were out in the early hours of today and will make further runs from midday to early afternoon, while reassessing operations as weather forecasts are updated. Meanwhile, drivers are encouraged to be cautious and to plan for any journeys they need to take.

Though most of the road network is now passable and previously closed roads now open, Gloucestershire Police are urging caution particularly at routes on higher ground and in rural areas, with Culver Hill in Amberley still currently closed.  

John Kay, Area Highways Manager, said: “Though we are expecting the county to remain relatively dry in the coming hours and days, the chance of snow flurries into next week means we will continue to treat both key routes and secondary roads across the county to ensure drivers are as safe as possible.”

Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue crews will continue to be on standby throughout the weekend, with 4x4 emergency response vehicles ready to react.

Meanwhile, the county’s five household recycling centres are operating as normal today.

Visit gloucestershire.gov.uk/closedschools for notice of any school closures or late openings tomorrow morning.

Follow @GlosHighways, @GlosCC, @GlosFire and @Glos_Police on Twitter for updates.