Winter maintenance

When clearing snow and ice, please follow these important dos and don’ts to help keep everyone safe:

✅ What you should do

• Work from the pavement and face oncoming traffic whenever possible.
• Move snow onto grass verges or landscaped areas.
• Pile snow at the edge of pavements next to the road to create a buffer between vehicles and pedestrians.
• Spread sand or ash on cleared areas to improve grip.
• Use grit or salt from public grit bins sparingly.
• Dress warmly, wear sturdy footwear, and avoid working in the dark.
• Wear light-coloured or reflective clothing to stay visible.
• Be aware of cold-related risks like hypothermia and wind chill.

❌ What you should avoid

• Don’t block driveways, footpaths, or access points with snow.
• Don’t use grit or salt from public highway bins on private property—this is considered theft.
• Don’t overuse salt—a teaspoon per square metre is enough to melt ice.
• Don’t lift large amounts of snow at once—compacted snow can be very heavy.
• Don’t use hot water to melt ice—it may refreeze and create dangerous black ice.
• Don’t work during blizzard conditions.

Clearing snow and ice: What the law says

You are legally allowed to clear snow and ice from pavements, paths, and public spaces outside your property.

This includes public roads and footways. If someone has an accident on a cleared area, it’s very unlikely you’ll be held liable—as long as you act carefully and sensibly. Make sure your actions don’t make the area more hazardous than it was before.

Remember, everyone has a responsibility to stay safe and be cautious in icy conditions.

Each year, as winter weather sets in, our teams head out to grit the roads across Stoke-on-Trent—working to keep them safe and accessible during icy and snowy conditions. Our goal is simple: to keep the city moving, even in the harshest weather.

With hundreds of miles of roads and thousands of daily journeys, it's vital that we keep as many routes open as possible. Our dedicated crews work throughout the year, often overnight, to help residents travel safely—even when temperatures drop below freezing.

How we decide when to grit

From October to April, we monitor weather conditions closely using a combination of expert forecasts and our own local weather stations. Each day, we receive:

• Morning summaries
• 24-hour and 36-hour forecasts
• Five-day outlooks
• Ice prediction graphs showing road surface temperature (RST), air temperature, and dew point
• Regular updates throughout the day

This data helps us make informed decisions about when to deploy our gritters.

What we do

When conditions indicate a risk of ice, we carry out pre-salting—a preventative measure to stop ice forming. In more extreme conditions, we perform post-salting to treat ice that has already formed.

Where We Grit Due to the cost and scale of the operation, we prioritise key routes. We treat around 48% of the city’s road network, covering approximately 278 miles per night, including:

• A, B, and C roads
• High-risk locations and essential access routes
• Major shopping areas in town centres
• Heavily used bus routes

Snow ploughing

During severe snowfall, we plough roads in priority order to ensure essential routes remain passable.

Our fleet

We operate 8 gritters from our highways depot, supported by on-call staff who provide 24-hour coverage to keep the city’s roads safe.

Local salt bins

Residents are welcome to use salt from local grit bins to treat pavements and roads near their homes. Please use it responsibly and only for public areas.

The purpose of this policy is to set out the principles that the city council adopts to meet its obligations and legal duties in respect of the winter service.

Read our Winter Service Policy here

Gritting routes

Can you grit my path?

We only have limited resources and have to focus on areas of greatest need so unfortunately we cannot offer footpaths There are grit bins available if you need to grit paths yourself. This grit can be used on pavements and other public footways.

Do you grit cycle paths?

We only have limited resources and have to focus on areas of greatest need so unfortunately we cannot offer Cyclepaths There are grit bins available if you need to grit paths yourself. This grit can be used on pavements and other public footways. I saw a gritter and it wasn't spreading any salt - why was that It may be that the gritter was on its way to start its route or is on its way back to the depot.

Do you grit car parks?

Yes, several of our car parks are on the secondary network which gets gritted when there are prolonged below freezing conditions and the resources allow.

Do you grit near schools?

If the school is on the gritting network it will be gritted in accordance with the policy and priorities.

Can you grit my street?

If your road is not on the gritting schedule then it is very unlikely that it will be added to the schedule in the near future.

Can you provide a salt bin for my street?

There are approximately 800 salt bins in the city and they've been placed in strategic positions. It's unlikely additional bins will be added in the near future.

What if I want to clear snow outside my home?

We have helpful advice for residents who are wishing to clear snow and ice from footways. The Department for Transport (DFT) advises that you shouldn't be put off clearing paths because you’re afraid someone will get injured. Remember people walking on snow and ice have a responsibility to be careful themselves. Find out more from the Met Office's 'Snow Code'.

Can you sell salt/grit to residents?

We don't sell salt. It can be purchased at a variety of DIY stores or builders merchants.

How can road users help?

There's a responsibility on everyone to drive carefully, especially during winter weather.

For expert advice on staying safe while driving in winter conditions, please visit the following trusted sources:

• THINK! – The Department for Transport’s road safety campaign
• Brake – The road safety charity
• Motorcycle Safety Guide – Tips for motorcyclists in winter

Staying informed about winter weather

While Stoke-on-Trent City Council does not provide weather forecasts directly, you can stay up to date by:

• Listening to local radio stations, which typically offer hourly updates and more frequent reports during severe weather
• Checking daily forecasts on trusted websites such as:
  • BBC Weather
  • Met Office

Winter maintenance on other roads

For information on how motorways and trunk roads in Staffordshire are maintained during winter, visit the National Highways website.

Live gritting updates

Whenever our weather forecasting system (Visalla) or our on-the-ground inspectors report a risk of snow or ice, our gritters are ready to respond.

For live updates on when and where gritters are operating in Stoke-on-Trent, follow Stoke-on-Trent City Council on Facebook.

Hundreds of grit bins are available across the city on selected roads.

Find your nearest grit bin here