New vehicles will join the local authority’s existing eight gritters from winter 2026, with the council confirming that the move is intended to cut emissions from its fleet.

According to the council, the new additions will feature GPS tracking systems, automated spreaders and route optimisation to boost the efficiency of services.

The council has also said the vehicles will assist in ‘preventing over or under gritting of the network’, which consists of over 650 kilometres of roads that require treating.

To support its winter operations this year, the local authority has secured over 2,500 tonnes of salt, while ensuring the community has access to more than 650 grit bins to treat side streets.

Cllr Simon Phipps, cabinet member for economy and infrastructure, said: ‘We have a team of 65 people in the winter gritting team who do an amazing job working around the clock to monitor conditions and treat the highways during the coldest periods of the year.

‘We have tonnes of grit stocked ready and will continue to monitor this as we move through the winter. We are also working towards procuring replacement gritting vehicles, which we hope to be able to use from next winter to further improve the service we provide.’

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