Highways Agency asks people to "be prepared"

Fifty per cent of road users would continue with a journey after hearing a severe weather warning; and around a third of road users would not carry out any checks on their vehicles before heading out, according to research by the Highways Agency.

After an early October cold snap across the country and as we head towards the winter, the Highways Agency is asking drivers and passengers to be prepared for severe weather. It's not just snow and ice, but also strong winds, heavy rain and thick fog than can affect journeys on the roads.

According to research by the Highways Agency, 50 per cent of road users would continue with a journey after hearing a severe weather warning. And around a third of road users would not carry out any checks on their vehicles before heading out. Reassuringly, 92 per cent of road users would seek information on travel conditions before setting off.

The advice from the Highways Agency, responsible for the motorways and major A roads in England, comes after the launch of their new fleet of orange winter service vehicles today (Monday 10 November) at a depot serving the A1 at Sandy, Bedfordshire. The Highways Agency is investing £45 million to replace its yellow 'gritters' over the next four years with 438 vehicles. The first of this year's 159 orange vehicles will be seen in the East of England, East Midlands, North West and Central Southern England (Hampshire).

Derek Turner, Director of Network Operations for the Highways Agency, said: "Working closely with specialist forecasters from the Met Office, the Highways Agency plays an essential role during the winter months by tackling snow and ice, and warning drivers of severe weather.

"While we're ready for winter, we want drivers and passengers to be ready too. We recognise that travel can be essential and our survey shows that people do head out during severe weather, but being caught out by cold weather, strong winds or heavy rain isn't nice, especially if you've broken down. Drivers need to be prepared with a severe weather kit in their vehicles, carry out simple vehicle checks before they set out and plan their journeys using our website, listening to DAB digital "Traffic Radio" and local radio stations, or by calling our information line (08457 50 40 30).

"Our new winter fleet gives us the capability to treat the roads more efficiently and effectively when ice and snow are forecast. The new vehicles have cleaner engines and will use less salt through the new pre-wet process. Road users will start to see the new orange vehicles on the roads from this Autumn."

The new winter vehicles mark the Agency's move towards the use of pre-wet salt, which gets to work faster on the road surface to prevent ice formation and is more friendly to vehicles and the environment as less salt is used. Drivers of the new vehicles also have state of the art monitoring technology on board. GPS tracking means the Agency knows where any one vehicle is on its network.

Once again this winter, forecasters from the Met Office are working with the Highways Agency at its National Traffic Control Centre (NTCC) in the West Midlands.

Dick Porter, Met Office Forecaster at the Highways Agency's NTCC, said: "Even though the Met Office is predicting mean temperatures to be above average this winter, colder spells could easily catch drivers by surprise. However, staying in touch with the latest Met Office forecast can help travellers anticipate and prepare for difficult driving conditions from snow, heavy rain, fog or low temperatures."

Local radio stations are also a key source for the latest weather and traffic news - and according to the Agency's survey of road users, people use a mix of sources to get the latest information on travel conditions, with radio being used by more than 51 per cent, followed closely by television (48 per cent) and internet (46 per cent).

Drivers and their passengers can also call the Highways Agency 24-hour automated phone service on 08700 660 115 for the latest traffic and travel information. For information on weather conditions, visit the Met Office website at metoffice.gov.uk or listen to local radio broadcasts.