The Council’s Roads Team has been out across North Ayrshire with its snowploughs before there has been any snow.

An annual dry run has been carried out by North Ayrshire Council to ensure its fleet of snow clearing and gritting vehicles is ready to hit the road before the wintry weather arrives.

The test run allows staff to carry out essential advanced checks on equipment and vehicles, and also familiarise themselves with gritting routes.

Councillor Scott Davidson, Cabinet member for Place, said: “We have 7000 tonnes of road salt our storage depot in Kilwinning, and around 2500 tonnes at the depot at Brodick, in Arran.

“We are making sure our hard-working staff are preparing for winter, and drivers across the region can be assured that priority roads and footpaths will be treated and kept as safe as possible throughout the winter months ahead.”

A squad of 35 drivers and 15 multi-purpose vehicles will be available 24/7 to keep the area’s priority routes in use throughout winter.  These round-the-clock measures will be in place from late October right through to mid-April.

Staff will also be on-call over weekends and public holidays from November to February to help treat main footways in the event of ice and frost.  Arrangements are also in place with local contractors and farmers to call upon their assistance in case of severe weather conditions.

Salt is also stored at strategic points throughout the area for use by residents.  There are around 500 grit bins and 15 larger community bins that people can collect salt from for personal use on roads, driveways or footpaths.

Weather stations on the A760 at Catburn, between Largs and Kilbirnie, and the String Road on Arran are fitted with cameras, which will assist Winter Controllers and Supervisors in monitoring weather conditions.

Weather forecasts are relayed three times a day – morning, noon and night – to the roads team who use the information to determine whether or not a snow or ice alert is issued.

A specialist detailed roads weather forecast is provided in collaboration with 12 other local authorities across the southwest of Scotland. Drivers are advised to plan ahead and check forecasts before starting a journey.