A-roads clear but temperatures set to plunge

SNOW UPDATE:

EAST Devon’s A roads are now passable with care but no buses are running, including X53, 54, 57 52, although Stagecoach are giving free bus rides to people in Exeter.

County council spokesman Stuart Hughes said: “All the A road network in East and Mid Devon are now passable with extreme care and DCC has started work on primary B roads.

Mr Hughes said secondary roads would be last to be cleared and treated and warned that temperatures were due to go down to minus 4 degrees tonight along with freezing fog, “making driving really treacherous this evening”.

He warned people who needed to travel to do so before sunset as temperatures would drop rapidly after dark.

DEVON County Council is warning motorists that road temperatures will remain below zero this afternoon

Forecasters say they will become even more treacherous as they plummet again tonight, with the added risk of fog.

The prediction for the next few hours is for Isolated showers near the coasts, otherwise dry.

Latest snow clearing update from the county council:

East Devon:

• Front line all out doing partial routes. They will return, fill up and go out to complete designated routes

Exeter

• Following snow plan

• Routes into Exeter treacherous

• Heavitree Corridor passable with care (PWC)

Barnstaple:

• The North Devon Link road has been handed back from the police to DCC to control and is PWC.

• Exmoor routes ok

Torrington:

• Concentrating on the main routes all PWC

Okehampton:

• Front line fleet treating Primary network

• 1x back up fleet assisting with Route 11

• 2 x back up fleet starting secondary routes

Tiverton:

• Link road open

• A396 being worked on both North and South

• A377 Copplestone through to Bow PWC

• Footway gangs clearing Tiverton Highstreet

• 3 diggers working towards cut off settlements

Newton Abbot

• A380 waiting for instructions to open and move vehicles using rolling road block

• A3212 a Snow Blower has joined the gritter and the gritter/plough to try and improve the situation on this road

• Small gritter working in Newton Abbot town centre

• 4 x 4 access on the moors

Ivybridge

• Primary network improving now trying to expand this further

Tavistock

• Princetown to Dartmeet 5’ snow drifts JCB dealing

• The two other roads are open PWC

• Hope to start secondary routes this afternoon