Council unveil their plans for cold winter

New fleet of gritting trucks ordered for the big freeze

- STUART MCFARLANE

Winter preparations are well underway across Stirling, as the council outlines the steps it is taking as temperatures begin to plunge.

The Met Office has issued yellow weather warnings for snow and ice in Stirling this week, with the conditions set to dip close to freezing - leading to hazardous conditions both on the roads and on paths around the region.

Stirling Council chiefs have invested in a new fleet of gritting vehicles to cope with the demands of maintaining more than 1000km of roads and over 600km of paths and cycleways.

A whopping 7,000 tonnes of salt is on standby for gritting across the network round-the-clock during periods of snow and ice to keep road users and pedestrians safe.

The local authority says priority will continue to be given to treating main routes to key locations including schools, hospitals, railway stations, shops and health clinics.

Nearly 550 grit bins have been placed in communities across Stirling to assist residents in clearing local paths and roads.