GPS Hailed As the Latest Weapon in Fight Against Icy Roads

[RobBrady]

With winter fast approaching, Surrey has taken an innovative stance against the potential disruption caused by inclement weather - relying on sat nav technology in their battle against the elements.

Road gritters, which will be placed on 24 hour standby, will be fitted with GPS trackers to ensure that targeted areas which are most affected by snow, ice and plummeting temperatures are indeed gritted.

Surrey County Council's Cabinet Member for Transport and Environment, John Furey, explained how the technology would "tell [them] exactly which roads have been treated" whilst thermal road mapping would identify "which areas are more likely to ice up".

This knowledge is intended to improve response times when poor weather conditions are experienced; with poor performance experienced nationwide over previous winters prompting the re-evaluation of measures adopted to cope with winter weather.

The use of GPS and thermal road mapping will also be combined with detailed weather forecasting whilst a larger fleet of vehicles designed to clear roads will be prepared for deployment.

More than 50 ploughs and spreaders will be provided by local farmers to help reach rural areas with quad bikes utilised for the hardest to reach places. This will be in addition to 39 road gritters which will be deployed throughout urbanised parts of the county.

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Robert Brady
Editor, Pocket GPS World
The Premier GPS / SatNav Resource for News, Reviews and Forums

[Wazza_G]

Sorry it's a bit late but as (rather unfortunately) a Surrey resident, I don't believe they can do it and like last time they failed abysmally to do anything other than roads where their old school chums & councillors lived.

SCC couldn't organise a booze up in a brewery if it were given a finely detailed step by step guide, let alone organise this.
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Be alert.. This country needs more lerts.