§ 2.38 p.m.
§ LORD DERWENTMy Lords, I beg to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ [The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government whether any improvements have been made since last winter, in either equipment or organisation, to deal with snow or ice on the roads.]
§ THE PAYMASTER GENERAL (THE EARL OF SELKIRK)My Lords, your Lordships may remember that we had a discussion on March 3 on snow-clearing facilities. At that time I said that a meeting would be held which would be attended by divisional road engineers, representatives of local authorities, the A.A., the R.A.C. and the British Road Federation. This meeting was held on April 14. Following the meeting my right honourable friend the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation has made arrangements to increase the snow-clearing plant 3 provided by his Department for use on trunk roads by the addition of 20 heavy lorries fitted with high wing snow ploughs, the equipping of 60 lorries of this type for gritting, and the provision of 68 trailer gritters and one small rotary snow blower. Delivery of practically all this plant is expected before the end of this month. The responsibility for clearing snow on other roads rests with the highway authorities, who are at liberty to use this plant, in addition to their own, for that purpose if it is not more urgently required on trunk roads.
§ LORD DERWENTMy Lords, I am grateful to my noble friend for his reply, and I am glad to think that there has been considerable improvement. May I ask him two supplementary questions on specific points? Have any arrangements yet been made to provide local authorities with up-to-the-minute meteorological information—that is to say, local meteorological information—as was suggested in the debate in March? Secondly, has a start yet been made on the practice that is common in other countries of providing wireless communication between snow-clearance teams and their vehicles and their depôts, so that, if a road is suddenly blocked by drifts, the snow-clearance teams can be sent to that place without going back to their depôts for orders?
§ THE EARL OF SELKIRKMy Lords, I can tell the noble Lord that there has been some extension of the snow-warning service of the Meteorological Office and, in particular, that it will extend to icing conditions as well as to snow. Whether this goes as far as the noble Lord wishes, I am not in a position to say. I am afraid that I cannot give him any information at the moment on his second point which relates to the provision of radio equipment. I will, however, write to the noble Lord on that point.