The average number of days councils in the UK spent gritting roads dropped by 29% between winter 2017/18 and winter 2019/20, according to new research by Citroen UK.
A Freedom of Information Request to UK councils found the average number of days each council gritted roads fell from 74.0 to 52.5 between 2017/18 and 2019/20.
However, in 2018 the UK was hit with the harshest winter on record since 2010, according to the Royal Meteorological Society, when ‘The Beast from the East’ brought below average temperatures and heavy snowfall.
Further research by the Asphalt Industry Alliance suggests that councils are in need of additional funding to maintain roads.
It claims there was an average annual road maintenance budget shortfall of £4.9m per local highway authority in England and Wales in 2020.
The findings came as the UK braced itself for another cold snap and the risk of dangerous road conditions, leading road safety and breakdown organisation GEM Motoring Assist to urge motorists to postpone all but essential journeys.
Of the councils that answered the Freedom of Information Request, just over half told Citroën UK they had specific Snow Routes in place that would receive priority treatment during periods of heavy snowfall and sustained periods of freezing temperatures.