Council crews to continue gritting roads while buses and trains running for now
LOCAL authorities will grit heavily trafficked roads throughout tonight and into tomorrow to keep the country moving “insofar as possible”.
The National Emergency Coordination Group said there were ample stocks of salt, with more than 300 snowploughs and salt spreaders in use across the network to keep roads open.
Sean Hogan, chairman of the National Emergency Coordination Group, said snow would affect the roads, but that main routes would be gritted.
“People will be encountering a level of snow and public services will be responding to keep the country moving insofar as possible,” he said. “Local authorities will continue the work of gritting roads to keep the country moving. The salt stocks are good and out there.”
Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), which operates the national network, said weather alerts warning of extreme low temperatures, coupled with snow and ice in some areas, were in place across the network for the coming days.
Some 120,000 tonnes of salt are in stock, with around 25,000 tonnes a week used during the last major snow chaos in 2010.
Irish Rail said that train services would operate where safe to do so, but added that customers with bookings between today and Friday could cancel their journeys without paying a penalty.
Other public transport services including buses are also expected to operate as usual throughout today, subject to local conditions.
However, if a red weather warning is issued, or the situation deteriorates, services are expected to be suspended, including school transport.