Edinburgh Council needs all hands on deck to deal with icy roads and pavements – John McLellan

Added to the full lockdown, it is even more vital that pavements are cleared because that’s the only exercise many people are getting, but it’s clear the council simply doesn’t have the ability to cope with a big freeze in the way that most people expect.

Only now is an operation being mounted to ensure grit bins are full, something which should have been done before so that local people can at least take some control themselves. The bin across from my house had grit, but was so compacted it needed a pick to dig it out.

The streets this week have been treacherous as the slight thaw gave the ice a watery polish, leaving not just elderly people particularly vulnerable, but every pedestrian.

The problem is worse in more inaccessible places, ironically often where there is a high proportion of elderly people, like Willowbrae where a combination of ice, ungritted pavements and a steep slope has made it impossible for many to venture out, especially as there is no local bus service to prioritise road treatment.

Now more snow is forecast it will be the same again but with no promise that the city’s ability to cope can improve to any great extent. At least the holiday season is now over and it should be all hands on deck, as it needed to be last weekend.

John McLellan is a Conservative councillor for Craigentinny/Duddingston

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