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Winter Weather Update

Published:

Friday 1 February 2019 – 9am - Update on affected schools and council services

London is currently experiencing adverse weather conditions. Barnet Council is working to ensure that the borough is well prepared for the the weather

a path with snowy trees

a path with snowy trees

The council is reminding residents to keep warm and well during colder temperatures.

Gritting the roads:

Our fleet of 10 gritters were out gritting roads yesterday evening and through the early hours of the morning.

Our primary task is to secure our ten priority routes and this will account for the majority of our resource. Once these routes are secured, we can consider our secondary routes and exceptionally, individual requests for assistance from hospitals, schools and residents.

We prioritise key routes within the Barnet network for our gritting activities into Priority One and Priority Two routes. Our aim is to treat the 10 Priority One routes before forecasted ice or frost occurs.  Priority is given to clearing snow and ice from areas where people are most at risk, such as near schools and busier footways.

To make us aware of other requests, please email: highwayscorrespondence@barnet.gov.uk

Transport for London (TfL) have also been in contact to outline their response to the conditions on their network: TfL has 11,000 tonnes of salt in strategically-located hubs around London and a fleet of 39 road gritters, as well as gritting quad bikes and flatbed trucks to keep the roads, pavements and cycle paths clear.

More information about our Winter Service can be found online.

Street cleaning:

Please be advised that usual street cleaning duties are currently partly suspended.

This is to allow resources to be diverted to clearing snow and gritting footways, starting with our town centres and other high footfall areas and hot-spots.

Street Scene staff were out this morning treating town centres and transport interchange footways in preparation for the rush hour.

Grit Bins:

Street Scene staff have been refilling grit bins and will continue to do so to enable grit spreading as required.

We have placed grit bins at more than 450 known trouble spots and steep locations, so highway users can assist themselves. Residents are encouraged to use grit from any of Barnet’s grit bins to grit public roads and footpaths. Please do not use on private property.

More information on our gritting services and location of grit bins can be found online.

Recycling and Waste collections:

All recycling and waste collection teams are out and attempting to collect where it is safe to do so, but it may not be possible to collect today in certain locations, including some side roads.

Collections that are not able to be made are being recorded, and we will attempt to reschedule these collections where practical.

If your bin is not collected, please leave it at the boundary of your property and we will collect the bin as soon as possible.

Green bin collections scheduled for today are suspended to enable the service to prioritise recycling and waste collections. We will keep this under review. It is possible we may not be able to collect these green bins until the next scheduled collection in two weeks’ time.

School Closures:

A number of schools are closed today, check the Barnet website for the latest information

Passenger Transport Services:

All SEN Transport is cancelled today.

Rough sleepers:

Due to the cold temperatures and snowfall, we have implemented our Severe Weather Emergency Protocol. Accommodation is available to all rough sleepers, whilst the temperatures remain below zero.

Rough sleepers should be directed to Homeless Action in Barnet, a homeless day centre at 36B Woodhouse Road London N12 0RG (020 8446 8400) to be verified.

They will then be directed to Barnet House, where Barnet Homes will provide them with details for temporary accommodation.


Follow us on Twitter for regular updates on when we are gritting in Barnet.

For the latest weather information, follow the Met Office on Twitter, and follow TfL for updates on traffic and buses