Telford council ships in extra road grit

An extra 1,000 tonnes of grit has been shipped in by council chiefs in Telford as forecasters predict the return of sub-zero temperatures and ice this week.

The authority said it was confident it was better prepared than ever to keep roads clear with temperatures expected to plummet in the county to -3C (27F) on Thursday.

Last year the authority overspent on grit by more than £250,000 when adverse weather and national salt shortages put pressure on councils across the UK.

The council's salt supplies have been increased to about 2,700 tonnes of salt this winter.

This exceeds the national guidelines and means the council could grit continuously four times a day for up to 16 days.