Bromsgrove | Redditch | Wyre Forest

North Worcestershire emergency Planning

Travelling in winter

Preparing for the impacts of severe weather on road, rail and air travel is not just the responsibility of the transport operators. We can all help to make their job easier when winter does its worst.

It's sometimes said that the UK can experience four seasons in one day and most of the time our transport operators do a fantastic job, keeping things moving whatever the weather. It's during winter though when transport networks face the biggest weather challenges. We must accept that there are times when severe weather will cause disruption.

On the roads ice makes driving difficult while snow will make things worse still. It's not just Christmas card weather that causes problems though. Heavy rain can flood roads; high winds will bring down trees and other debris and can even topple high-sided vehicles. Fog is not just a nuisance - it can be a real danger too.

Railways can cope better with small amounts of snow but even the biggest train won't get through deeper snow drifts. Flooding can affect railways just as much as roads, and high winds can bring down the overhead lines that some electric trains rely on. Falling leaves can cause problems which will be worse in certain weather conditions than others.

Most days, airports and airlines cope well with our weather. However when weather disruption does affect air, travel it's usually because the weather is very severe. That means the disruption can be equally severe. Airports and airlines have plans in place to minimise this disruption, but it sometimes means reducing the number of flights. It might seem the wrong thing to do but it helps to maximise the number of flights that can beat the weather and it helps get things back to normal as quickly as possible.

Be prepared, check travel information links before you travel.

The Met Office website has many popular travel links.

Gritting

Worcestershire County Council and Highways England do their best to keep the highways network running as effectively as they can during periods of ice and snow, primarily by gritting a number of key routes. You can view Worcestershire County Council's gritting routes on their website. You can also report a gritting, ice or snow issue on their website.

Worcestershire County Council treat a primary network of 1,300km in the first instance, with a secondary network treated when conditions require it and when resources allow. Please plan your journeys carefully when there is a risk of ice or snow.

Further information is available on the Highways England website.