Cold weather has caused chaos in the Peak District after ‘200 cars’ blocked gritters while councils elsewhere refuse to empty frozen bins.
Emergency crews were unable to pass through Rushup Edge and Mam Nick, near Edale on Saturday morning due to vehicles obstructing the icy Derbyshire Road.
The highways authority urged drivers to ‘not add to the problems’ as temperatures in the UK plunged to -17C.
A spokesman added the job of gritters was being made ‘very difficult’.
It comes as freezing weather and snowfall have led to disruption in Derbyshire all week as well as a number of road closures.
Other councils in the UK have also complained of their job being made difficult by the cold conditions but for different reasons.
Residents in Leicestershire were left outraged after the council refused to empty people’s bins because it was too cold.
The East Midlands district of Harborough announced collection crews would be unable to return for bins where contents had frozen solid, leaving people with overflowing rubbish on their curbsides.
Emergency crews were unable to pass through Rushup Edge and Mam Nick, near Edale on Saturday morning due to vehicles obstructing the icy Derbyshire Road
The highways authority urged drivers to ‘not add to the problems’ as temperatures in the UK plunged to -17C
Previously the council had told people to leave their bins out for later collection as crews could not complete rounds, but shortly deleted their post issuing this advice
Previously the council had told people to leave their bins out for later collection as crews could not complete rounds, but shortly deleted their post issuing this advice.
A new post said: ‘The contents of some household wheeled bins may freeze due to the freezing temperatures expected this weekend. Unfortunately, if the contents of your wheeled bin are frozen solid, our crews will be unable to empty your bin and will not be able to return.’
Many locals responded angrily on social media, with one person saying: ‘They most certainly should return and do them at a later date that’s what people pay council tax for.’
Another added: ‘What do they expect, they tell you to put your bin out by 7am but don’t empty it till 4.30pm. Are we supposed to wrap our bins in electric blankets?’
A third concluded things would not be much different as they ‘only take half the rubbish anyway’.
Harborough District Council has been approached for comment.
Walkers enjoy the freezing fog and icy weather in Richmond Park south-west London this morning as the Met Office warns of more snow and ice today
People out early on a cold and frosty morning in the countryside. Dunsden, Oxfordshire – 12 Jan 2025
Temperatures dropped to -10C in the village of Stamford in Lincolnshire, on Saturday January 11
More alarming weather is expected for later this month with a 470-mile influx of snow expected to rock the UK.
Areas from Wick to Manchester are likely to be coated with Inverness also having a possible 7cm of the white stuff.
It comes as Altnaharra, which is in the most northern region of the Highlands, recorded -18.7C on Friday night.
The Met Office says the chilly weather this morning with frost and patchy fog will persist in the east later into the day.
Dry and occasional sunny spells are expected for parts of the south with cloudy weather elsewhere and persistent rain spreading into northwestern Scotland this afternoon. Temperatures near average away from the southeast.
