WINTER had Bury in its icy grip this week as snowfalls and sub-zero temperatures brought Arctic weather conditions to the borough.

Four schools closed on Wednesday (Jan 28) and residents struggled to get to work.

During the morning rush-hour, nose to tail traffic moved at a snail's pace and motorists were left fuming as they faced prolonged journeys.

Despite repeated gritting operations undertaken by Bury Council staff before and during the snowfalls, many drivers complained of hazardous and treacherous conditions as they limped to work.

Many of those who left their cars at home to take the Metrolink did not escape either as disruption was caused by tram and points failures. A tram broke down at Whitefield on Wednesday morning, coupled with a points failure at Besses which halted services for 25 minutes.

Snow covered the borough on Tuesday evening, followed by additional flurries on Wednesday morning during the rush-hour. Many local routes were choked with traffic, causing considerable hold-ups and delays.

Some angry and frustrated drivers contacted the Bury Times and claimed that many major roads were untreated and unable to cope with the severe conditions.

Private minibus driver Mr William Peatfield, who ferries seven children from all over the borough to Unsworth Primary School, said: "I set off at 7.30am on Wednesday and the roads weren't gritted. I went down Brandlesholme Road and I slipped all the way. And other roads were the same, except the ones in Ramsbottom which were great.

"I picked up the first child at 7.40am. On a normal day we would have arrived at the school at 8.50. But on Wednesday we didn't get there until 10.15am. Virtually every road I went on wasn't gritted."

Summerseat resident Nick Sutcliffe, who works in Wigan and normally takes 50 minutes to get there, said Bury Council should be ashamed of itself for what he called a "money-saving tactic" by not gritting.

"It is an absolute disgrace. There are no grit boxes anywhere in the village and I did not see one gritter. I have only lived in Bury for six months and I am shocked by their lack of response."

Mr Jeff Buckley, of Hunter Street, Radcliffe, said: "My wife set off at 8am to drive to her work in Bury. But it took her 90 minutes. Bury and Bolton Road was completely packed with snow and my wife was stuck there for a long time."

He added: "The council knew three days in advance the snow was coming."

Mr Buckley, who works in Heywood, initially encountered similar difficulties. But when he got to Heap Bridge, the roads were clear.

"I find it unbelievable that the roads should be horrendous in Radcliffe and Bury, but not in Rochdale's area."

But children certainly seemed to welcome the snow. Pictured armed with snowballs and clearly enjoying the wintry weather are Bury youngsters, from left, Chris Duffy; Kieran McGroarty; Robert Clifton and Nathan Dean, all aged 11.

The harsh weather forced the closure of four local primary schools on Wednesday, giving pupils at Heaton Park, Whitefield, Radcliffe's St Andrew's and St Joseph and St Bede's and St Paul's CE primary in Bury an unexpected holiday. All schools re-opened as normal yesterday.

Holy Cross College in Bury shut at lunchtime on Wednesday to allow time for students and staff to get home.

Bury town centre was a ghost town on Wednesday, Market Day, when it is normally awash with shoppers.

Bury Council's Bradley Fold base, which houses eight gritting machines, one loading shovel and more than 20,000 tonnes of rock salt, had a busy few days. To answer criticism, the local authority gave a detailed breakdown and timetable of its gritting operations.

Tuesday

6.50pm: Gritting commenced with the first wagon leaving Bradley Fold depot. All six routes, including Fairfield and Prestwich Hospitals were covered using a total of 36 tonnes of salt.

9.15pm: All routes, including hospitals, re-covered in the second grit. Once completed, four vehicles were sent on selected routes. 9.30pm: A seventh driver was brought in to cover the south of the borough.

10pm: Checking begins on all roads from north to south.

Wednesday

1.15am: Start of a third complete grit of all routes, including the hospitals. The total tonnage of salt used for the above was 138 tonnes.

7.05am: Gritting of selected roads started followed by another full grit. A total of 84 tonnes of salt used.

8.00am: All street cleansing operatives were turned out to carry out hand gritting using a further 20 tonnes of salt.