Aberdeen City Council has agreed to spend £1.7 million on winter gritting this year.
The council has agreed on plans to prioritise certain roads and pavements in the city, with main routes being treated with more regularly.
They include the strategic roads and all the main distributor roads, access roads for emergency service vehicles and the de-trunked sections of the A96 and A92.
Other routes, such as main secondary distributor roads, and link roads and local access roads with special circumstances such as steep slopes will be next in line for gritting.
Current salt stocks are greater than any amount used in both of the last two winters.
Aberdeen City Council transport spokeswoman councillor Sandra Macdonald told the Aberdeen Evening Express: “It is good to see that once again our services are ready for the oncoming winter. Our staff go above and beyond to ensure the city’s key roads and pavements are kept gritted according to how they are prioritised.to which priority they are.
“As always, we hope the oncoming winter will be a moderate one however it is reassuring to know that we are prepared if there are adverse weather conditions and have plans in place in case a further coronavirus outbreak disrupts the efforts of staff or salt supplies.”
The community salt bags scheme will also continue, with one-tonne bags of salt being issued to community groups who request them.
Liberal Democrat Operations spokesman Steve Delaney said: “This winter is likely be a challenging one, regardless of its severity with the unknown additional issues the Covid-19 pandemic may show up. All being well, the Winter Maintenance Plan should deliver a similar level of service to that seen in previous years.
“However, should the pandemic affect staff numbers, fuel supplies or availability of additional salt, the situation will be very different with gritting priorities scaled back to such an extent it may prove difficult for people to get to work.
“The Liberal Democrats have for some years advocated making resources available to community groups so that we can all do our bit to help keep footways within our own streets clear of snow and ice”.
“I am therefore pleased to see the continuation of the large community grit bags in 20 locations across the city as well as the one-tonne community salt bags.”
