Dozens of roads and streets will be prioritised for gritting in Reading as winter approaches and temperatures are expected to drop.
Every year, Reading Borough Council prepares for potentially hazardous conditions on the roads it manages, which involves using salt to unfreeze road surfaces.
The council has two lists of roads that it prioritises, divided into a primary and secondary salting network.
There are 131 roads that are on the council’s primary salting network list, including the main roads such as Bath Road, Oxford Road, Basingstoke Road and London Road.
The majority of those included have gritting along the entirety of the road, whereas some are gritted along the most important stretches between key junctions.
There are 78 roads which have secondary priority for salting. The prioritisation means that the council’s contractor J.H. Cresswell and Sons is asked to grit within one hour for primary list roads and three hours for the secondary roads.
The full list of roads featured is contained in the council’s Winter Service Plan 2023/24.
At a meeting where the service plan was presented, Cllr Stephen Goss (Conservative, Emmer Green) argued that Kidmore End Road, a major north-south route in Caversham, should be included in the primary priority list.
Cllr Goss said: “As things stand Kidmore End Road is a secondary priority for salting over the winter, given the amount of additional traffic that will be travelling along the road now there is a housing development at the former golf course, surely on the basis of what is included in the report in terms of HGVs and levels of traffic, it should be moved towards a primary salting road?”
Sam Shean, highways and traffic services manager replied that gritting is prioritised based on traffic levels, a bus route and whether it is a classified road (i.e an A Road or B Road).
He added that Kidmore End Road is set to be re-evaluated for primary priority gritting next winter.
Cllr Goss also raised the issue of limited salting of cycling routes in the town.
Mr Shean replied that the method for gritting in cycle routes is different.
He said: “You won’t grit at the same time every night, it depends rainfall, cloud clearance, drop in temperatures etc.
“At the moment we go out with three trucks, and a computer will activate the gritting at the right level. When we go to remote cycleways, it becomes a different operation, it becomes an operation which is manually delivered.
“You’ll have a quadbike towing a bucket of material.”
These quadbikes are then used to dispatch the grit.
There are no changes to the primary and secondary salting routes for the 2023/2024 winter season.
However, the council has announced that Shinfield Road will receive additional gritting to ensure the segregated cycle lanes are de-iced, and the same will be done when cycle lanes are established in Bath Road.
The Winter Service Plan was approved at a meeting of the council’s housing, neighbourhoods & leisure committee on Wednesday, November 8.
PRIMARY GRITTING ROUTE
A33, including Bus Lanes and Bypass – South Oak Way R/Bout
Alexandra Road: Upper Redlands Road To Addington Road
Addington Road : Redlands Road To Craven Road
B3270
Bagnall Way
Basingstoke Road
Bath Road
Bedford Road: Oxford Road To Chatham Street
Beresford Road
Berkeley Avenue
Blagrave Street
Briants Avenue
Bridge Street, Caversham
Bridge Street, Reading
Buckingham Drive
Burghfield Road
Castle Hill
Castle Street
Caversham Park Road
Caversham Road
Chapel Hill
Chatham Street
Cheapside
Christchurch Gardens: Northumberland Avenue To Basingstoke Road
Christchurch Road
Church Road, Caversham
Church Street, Caversham
City Road
Corwen Road
Cow Lane
Craven Road
Cressingham Road
Crown Street
Dee Road
Donkin Hill
Duke Street
Dwyer Road
Eldon Road
Elm Road
Evesham Road: Southdown Road To Buckingham Drive
Forbury Road
Friar Street
George Street, Caversham
Gillette Way
Gosbrook Road: Prospect Street To Briants Avenue
Great Knollys Street: Caversham Road To North Street
Greyfriars Road
Grovelands Road
Gun Street Gweal Avenue
Hartland Road
Hemdean Road: Church Street To Oakley Road
Henley Road
High Street
Hildens Drive
Holybrook Road
Honey End Lane
IDR Inner Relief Road
Kendrick Road
Kentwood Hill
King Street
King’s Road, Reading
Liebenrood Road
Lindisfarne Way
London Road
London Street
Lower Elmstone Drive
Lower Henley Road
Lowfield Road
Manor Farm Road: Gweal Ave To Gillette Way
Market Place
Mayfair
Mill Lane
Minster Street
Mount Pleasant
Norcot Road
North Street, Reading
Northern Way
Northumberland Avenue
Overdown Road
Oxford Road
Park Lane
Pell Street
Peppard Road: Excluding Loop Lowfield Road To Buckingham Drive
Pepper Lane
Pierces Hill
Portman Road
Priest Hill
Prospect Street, Caversham
Queen’s Road, Reading
Reading Bridge
Redlands Road
Richfield Avenue
Rose Kiln Lane
Rotherfield Way
Southdown Road: Rotherfield Way To Evesham Road
Russell Street
School Road
Shepherds Lane: Upper Woodcote Road To Woodcote Way
Shinfield Road
Sidmouth Street: London Road To Queen’s Road
Silver Street
Southampton Street
Southcote Lane
St Marys Butts
St Peters Hill
St Saviours Road: Berkeley Avenue To Holybrook Road
Stanshawe Road
Station Hill
Station Road
The Forbury: Valpy Street To Market Place
The Meadway
The Triangle: St Michaels Road To Walnut Way
Tilehurst Road
Trooper Potts Way
Tudor Road
Upper Woodcote Road
Valpy Street
Vastern Road
Water Road
Watlington Street: Queen’s Road To King’s Road
Weldale Street: Caversham Road To North Street
Wensley Road: Holybrook Road To Hospital Roundabout
West Street
Whitley Street
Whitley Wood Lane
Whitley Wood Road
Wigmore Lane
Wokingham Road
Woodcote Road
Woodcote Way
SECONDARY GRITTING ROUTES
Acre Road
Addington Road: Craven Road To Erleigh Road
Albert Road
All Hallows Road
Alpine Street
Amersham Road
Armour Hill
Armour Road
Ashampstead Road
Beech Road
Bennet Road
Berkshire Drive
Blagdon Road
Blenheim Road (Caversham)
Buckland Road
Church End Lane
Circuit Lane: Southcote Lane To Silchester Road
Cockney Hill
Coley Avenue
Conisboro Avenue: Albert Road To Uplands Road
Connaught Road: Tilehurst Road To Prince Of Wales Avenue
Corbridge Road
Courtenay Drive
Cranbury Road: Tilehurst Road To Prince Of Wales Avenue
Crescent Road
Eastern Avenue: Crescent Road To Whiteknights Road
Elgar Road
Elgar Road South
Elmhurst Road
Elmstone Drive
Erleigh Road
Evesham Road: Southdown Road To Grove Road
Gosbrook Road: Briants Avenue To Star Lane
Grove Road
Hexham Road: Northumberland Avenue To Corbridge Road
Highmoor Road: Albert Road To Woodcote Road
Hogarth Avenue
Hunters Chase
Imperial Way
Island Road
Kenavon Drive
Kensington Road: Tilehurst Road To Prince Of Wales Avenue
Kidmore End Road
Kidmore Road
Kiln Road: Caversham Park Road To Marchwood Avenue
Kings Meadow Road: Vastern Road To Napier Road
Linden Road
Micklands Road
New Lane Hill: Hogarth Avenue To The Meadway
Napier Road
Newcastle Road: Northumberland Avenue To Corbridge Road
Northbrook Road
Oakley Road
Oak Tree Road
Old Honey End Lane
Prospect Street, Reading
Richmond Road (Caversham)
Shepherds Lane: Woodcote Way To Kidmore Road
Silchester Road: Circuit Lane To Faircross Road
Spey Road
St. Anne’s Road
St. Michael’s Road
Star Road
Surley Row: Rotherfield Way To St. Barnabas Road
Swallowfield Drive
Tay Road: Dee Road To Spey Road
Tredegar Road
The Mount, Caversham: Albert Road To Priest Hill
Uplands Road
Usk Road
Waverley Road
Wensley Road: Hospital Roundabout To End/Loop
Western Elms Avenue
Westwood Road
Westwood Glen
Whiteknights Road
Wilson Road
Wolseley Street
