Sponsored Editorial

As temperatures begin to dip, Kent County Council’s hardworking gritting team know all too well the role they play in keeping roads open.

During the coldest months of the year, the pressure is on for the team to ensure the county’s 58 key routes are kept spread with salt when temperatures are due to hit 0C.

All gritters are equipped with technology that allows auto salting and stores all the county’s primary routes, so anyone can drive any gritter knowing full coverage with salt will be achieved.

It is not a job for the faint-hearted and relies on the expertise of gritters knowing intricate details of the roads they cover.

Chris Court, who is contracted by Amey to grit Kent’s roads on the council’s behalf, has been doing so since he started almost 25 years ago.

The 47-year-old, who is a site agent by day, quickly dons his high-vis overalls on wintry nights ready to cover his route out of Aylesford Highway Depot from Detling Hill to Blue Bell Hill.

He said: “In the bad weather, when it’s snowing, it’s a great feeling to know that you’ve worked hard to keep a road open.

“The best feeling in the world is when you’ve been out early in the morning before the rush hour with heavy snow and it’s able to stay open because we were able to grit in time.

“When I was younger, I never said no to an opportunity, so when Amey asked me if I wanted to get my HGV licence and help in the winter, I jumped at the chance.”

With being on call every other week, the work can be unrelenting in the coldest winter months.

Having previously driven gritters called the Snowmenator and Showsnowmercy, Chris’ new Mercedes Actros automatic six-wheeler has not been named this year.

He said: “When I’m going out on a round, I’m usually carrying between four and six tonnes of salt.

“The lorry acts differently, and when you’ve got it full of brine it’s usually not far off 21 tonnes so you can really tell the difference.”

When the alarm goes off at 3am for a gritting shout the father-of-two quickly blows the cobwebs away by singing along to the radio.

“When I go out early in the morning I like to listen and sing along to BBC Radio 2 to get the morning started,” said Mr Court.

“There's great team spirit gritting. You get to know the guys you work with, there’s always a bit of banter and we all help each other out where we can. If someone has finished early and another is struggling to finish in time, then we’ll help them out.

“It’s a job everyone wants you to do but nobody wants to see you doing it. It’s not glamorous but it’s an important job. You need to know what you’re doing and be ready to adapt your route to reflect the conditions if needed.”

Visit www.kent.gov.uk/roads-and-travel/what-we-look-after/winter-service to learn more about Kent’s gritters and find out about the routes covered in KCC’s winter service.

To keep up to date with live gritting updates and weather reports, visit the Gritting Kent Facebook and Twitter pages.