Winter Maintenance

During winter months Longford County Council monitor road conditions and in the event of frost and snow the County Council implement a winter gritting programme based on an agreed priority schedule of roads.

Winter Maintenance Plan

To view a full list of the routes, processes, procedures and key roles employed by Longford County Council, to deliver the winter service for County Longford please view:

The Council has endeavoured to provide as much information as it can to members of the public relating to the treatment of roads during periods of severe weather.

Quick Links: 

WINTER-SERVICE-PLAN-2023-2024.pdf (size 2.6 MB)

Winter Ready Website 
Winter Ready booklet 
Winter Weather Advice 
Advice to Drivers.

Current Practice in Longford

Thermal mapping of the County has been carried out and is available on the ICE CAST system.  Salting routes have been prepared which are based on meteorological data and past experience.  The Ice Cast service monitors weather stations and road temperature and conditions in Longford County on a continual basis throughout the day and this information is monitored.

County Council trucks fitted with Salt Spreaders are utilised to treat roads in the county.  Salting is carried out having regard to the available data and the need to maintain essential services in severe weather conditions. 

The extent of winter gritting varies from Local Authority to Local Authority.  In general all National routes are gritted.  The gritting of Regional and Local roads is a discretionary matter.  Longford County Council makes decisions with regard to the gritting of roads, other than National Primary Routes, based on the availability of resources and the priorities outlined above.  

Resources

Longford County Council carry out 24/7 monitoring of road conditions from mid October to April using detailed predictions provided by Met Eireann, roadside weather stations and ice prediction software.

A fleet of 6 trucks fitted with mountable / demountable steel grittars is used to spread salt on an agreed priority road network whenever road frost, snow or ice is forecast. This network is detailed in the attached map.

The Council has 2 lorry-mounted snow ploughs for use during significant snow / sleet conditions.

Gritting salt is supplied by the NRA and the Department of Transport.

Service Limitations

Ice-free roads cannot be guaranteed.  The motorist should remember the following:

  • Approximately 90% of roads are NOT routinely salted.
  • In Ireland there are a high proportion of marginal nights when temperatures are very close to zero.  This makes is more difficult to accurately predict frost than in colder countries.  As a consequence Met Eireann can only guarantee 80% accuracy in their forecasts.
  • It can take up to 4 hours to salt a route, so any journey may start or end on an untreated section of route.
  • In heavy rain, salt can be washed away and the wet surface may subsequently freeze if the temperature falls below zero.
  • In cases of extended severe weather events, it is possible that only Priority 1 routes will be salted.

Driving in winter conditions involves particular risks.  The National Roads Authority has produced a leaflet entitled Safe Winter Driving that provides useful advice for motorists on how best to deal with these risks.

Please view: Safe Driving Guidelines.