Drivers urged to to give gritters space as yellow weather warning in place for snow and ice

Five National Highways gritters were struck by other vehicles while they were out and about spreading salt last winter.

Darren Clark, Severe Weather Resilience Manager, at National Highways, said: “It is quite shocking that five of our gritter vehicles were struck while in the course of their duties last winter season.

“With the current winter conditions it is a timely reminder for drivers to give our vehicles the time and space they need to do their jobs to keep everyone safe.

“We also encourage everyone to follow our TRIP messaging so they are fully prepared for their journeys.”

National Highways also reminds motorists to keep TRIP in mind ahead of journeys – Top-up: oil, water, screenwash; Rest: rest every two hours; Inspect: Inspect tyres and lights and Prepare: check your route and the weather forecast.

National Highways has 443 state-of-the-art Romaquip-Volvo gritting vehicles and a total pool of around 530 gritting vehicles which can be out on our roads in sub-zero temperatures helping us to keep England's motorways and A-roads safe and enhance our service to customers. This also equates to one gritter for every eight miles of road.

The company started the winter season with around 280,000 tonnes of salt at its 128 depots.

Mr Clark added: "If you are going to pass us, please do so courteously, pass us safely and legally, or even better, if you are able to stay back, you will actually help the salt on the road activate even more quickly by crushing and breaking it into the road surface which benefits everyone.

"It’s worth remembering too, we are not gritting all the time. Some of our fleet may come off at particular junctions or return to depots while other vehicles take over, lowering any inconvenience to motorists.

"We are once again totally committed to working around the clock on these seasonal operations to keep all road users safe and thank everyone in advance for their patience and understanding."