Herefordshire is investing £1.4 million in new gritters and other measures to make the county more “winter resilient”.

A Herefordshire Council decision last week approved £1.16 million on eight new winter gritters to replace its current fleet over the next four years.

It will also spend £180,000 on renewing “outdated” weather monitoring and forecasting stations, and £40,000 on new flood warning sensors, with a further £22,000 going on installation and management.

The decision was taken yesterday (January 24) by cabinet member Infrastructure and transport Coun John Harrington.

Last month the council also confirmed it would spend £343,000 on other new plant, rather than continue to hire it.

On its shopping list are two road sweepers, two high-lift dumpers, two excavators and one towable woodchipper.

It said that the cost of hiring the same kit over five years would have been £560,000, meaning the plant it has committed to buying will have paid for itself in just over three years.

This “will then release funds that can be re-invested into the service”, the council’s decision notice said.

The council provides winter maintenance services on nearly 600 miles of the county’s roads from November to March.

The service includes:

Pre-salting to help prevent ice forming

Post-salting to melt ice and snow already formed

Snow ploughing to remove snow

Installing and refilling of grit bins

Its ‘Gritting routes map’ shows the priority and secondary routes for gritting.

For the latest updates on road gritting in Herefordshire follow @HfdsStreets and for road gritting in the West Midlands follow @wmgrit

To report dangerously icy roads which require urgent gritting, please call 01432 261800.