As temperatures start to plummet, for the first time this Winter season Island Roads will be deploying its fleet of gritters across the Isle of Wight tonight (Wednesday).
After a mild start to November, the mercury has fallen significantly this week.
With road surface temperatures due to dip below zero in the early hours of Thursday morning, gritters will be carrying out their first full run from 20:00 tonight.
Island Roads is advising motorists to take extra care when driving with icy surfaces possible. You can find out which roads will be treated at https://www.islandecho.co.uk/gritting-routes/.
You can read more about the work of the gritting team at https://www.islandecho.co.uk/gritters-at-the-ready-as-island-roads-crew-gear-up-for-winter-season/ and in the video below…
The PFI contractor relies on several sources of information to determine whether the network requires treatment. They use a forecast supplied by a national meteorological service and they also receive continuous readings and information from 2 weather stations at Duxmore and Rowridge.
Around 43% of the Island’s roads are treated by 4 gritting lorries, with smaller, harder-to-reach areas and roads inaccessible to the HGVs serviced by a single specially-adapted Mercedes van. A total of 25 drivers in the Island Roads workforce have completed sufficient training to allow them to drive a gritter, with the training to do so more rigorous and complex than people expect.
