Coverage‘insufficient’

Gritting of the Top of the Town during the midDecember cold snap has been slammed as “inadequate and insufficient to meet the needs of the area”.

Criticism of Stirling Council’s treatment of pavements leading up to the castle between December 11 and 14 came from Mercat Cross and City Centre Community Council chairman Andrew Szwebs.

At the council’s meeting on Thursday, Mr Szwebs said he had received numerous complainants from residents of footways being left covered in ice as temperatures fell as low as minus seven Centigrade.

Rain falling on cold ground left pavements like glass and caused many people to fall. Both Forth Valley Royal Hospital and Stirling Minor Injuries Unit had an influx of people with broken bones and sprains.

Mr Szwebs said: “My personal feeling was that the gritting of the Top of the Town and city centre fell below the expectations of what you would have liked to have seen.

“The council knew this weather was coming but I never saw any evidence of pavement gritting for three days.

“And it seems to have happened everywhere: either there was a slow response or no response.

“I am not attacking the council because I think the staff do a good job in challenging conditions but when this happens again, we need to make sure people are not falling about as they try to get around.”

Community councillor Melanie Cowe said during that period she walked through the city centre from Riverside and came across people slipping and clinging on to walls and railings to stay upright. There was also complaints about the absence of grit in grit bins sited in the area.

Deputy council leader Danny Gibson, Labour councillor for Stirling North, explained the council at that time faced a difficult combination of weather circumstances.

He said people’s expectations of what roads and pavements were to be gritted was “extremely high” but the surfaces actually tackled were outlined in the gritting policy agreed by the council.

Busiest roads were treated first followed by secondary routes, pavements, footpaths, car parks and public buildings.

Councillor Gibson said a review of the road maintenance operation would take place following winter, as it did every year.

Mr Szwebs said: “This was the worst I have seen it in 17 years and the gritting of pavements was inadequate and insufficient for the needs of the community. The gritting policy should reflect the fact that this area has some of the steepest streets in Stirling and very high footfall.”