These are the Chichester roads where gritting is being stopped

West Sussex County Council has decided to reduce the percentage of the road network it grits from 41 per cent to 31 per cent as part of cost-cutting measures.

Roads in the city itself which will no longer be treated include South Street, West Street, Kingsham Road, Kingsham Avenue, Quarry Lane, Florence Road, St James’ Road, Barnfield Drive, Swanfield Drive, Westgate, Terminus Road East, Sherbourne Road, Parklands Road, College Lane, Summersdale Road, Fordwater Road, The Drive, The Avenue, The Broadway, Maplehurst Road and Winterbourne Road.

Roads which will no longer be gritted near the city include Salthill Road from Fishbourne up to Hunters Race near Lavant, New Road at Goodwood, Charlton Road between Singleton and East Dean, Britten’s Lane between the A27 and Eartham, Oving Road from Drayton to Aldingbourne, Wophams Lane and Green Lane south of Hunston, Rotten Row, Highleigh Road and Keynor Lane in Sidlesham, Manor Road, Merryfield Drive and Constable Drive in Selsey, Delling Lane and Bosham Lane in Bosham, Broad Road and Cheesemans Lane through Hambrook, Stein Road in Southbourne and Old Farm Lane and Whitechimney Row in Westbourne.

Michael Jones, leader of the Labour group at County Hall, said: “It looks like the West Sussex Tories have come up with a scheme that abandons virtually all of the towns across the county.

“Residents face the prospect of being snowed in and even more difficulties in getting to work and carrying on their everyday activities in extreme cold weather conditions. It is a recklessly short sighted measure, there’s no recognition that people won’t be able to get on to the roads that have been cleared if their roads are iced up.

“Any motorists or bus users who end up trapped or stranded on such iced up roads will know they only have the local Tories to thank for their predicament.”

A West Sussex County Council spokesman said: “We have taken a risk-based approach to identifying the roads most in need of being treated, which prioritises roads that have highest use and provides access to key facilities across the network.

“To make best use of our finite resources, it is important to focus our efforts on gritting roads where there is high demand, so we have reviewed our West Sussex Winter Service Policy in line with the national code of practice, Well Managed Highway Infrastructure. This means the new service level during icy conditions reduces from 41 per cent of the road network to 31 per cent, which equates to 1,283 km of the network and targets high speed/high volume roads.

“The reduction in the amount of network that we treat does produce savings for the authority as we have reduced the number of gritters and drivers we need. The total savings this year are around £150,000 – however, if we get a prolonged spell of frost and snow then costs will increase.

“The county council will continue to promote a ‘safety first’ message and remind road users that those who drive on public highways should do so in a manner and at a speed that is safe, having regard to such matters as the nature of the road, the weather conditions and the traffic conditions.”

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