Lincolnshire County Council has defended its decision not to support the Lincoln Christmas Market by providing additional gritting on Saturday night in uphill Lincoln.
The market was controversially cancelled by City of Lincoln Council for Sunday, December 10 on the threat of forecasted heavy snow, which never materialised.
This was the first time a single day of the market has been cancelled in 35 years of running.
Previously, in 2010 the entire four-day event was cancelled due to snow.
Simon Walters, Strategic Director of Communities and Environment at City of Lincoln Council, said that the council had asked Lincolnshire County Council’s Highways department for enhanced localised gritting around the market, at the park and ride site and the coach park.
However, the city council said that this request was rejected.
Steve Willis, Chief Operating Officer at Lincolnshire County Council told The Lincolnite that the council had no alternative.
He said: “We had emergency plans to deal with the snow event. We had the forecast in advance, so we knew that there was a forecast of 10-15cm of snow across the county including Lincoln, so we had plans in place for our gritters go out at certain times and they were in place as any other snow event.
“Due to the forecast, we had to use our 43 gritters to cover the county and they ran multiple times throughout the night and the day.
“For three days in advance of the market we salted the footways and the market area and there was salt available for the city council if they wanted to use it, we just couldn’t resource out with the gritters as they needed to be kept to deal with countywide issues.
“I think we made the right decision. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but if the snow had come as predicted the we would have had to deal with a major snow event.
“Obviously the City of Lincoln Council made the decision to close the market and not have it on the Sunday and that was their decision, but we couldn’t provide any more support than what we had already given because we had to concentrate on the bigger picture.”
The Lincolnite welcomes your views. All comments are reactively-moderated and must obey the house rules. Please stay on topic and be respectful of other readers.
Exciting news for MyLocal app users and The Lincolnite readers! Our latest update is now available to download from your app store and comes packed with the best local news experience you can enjoy.
Revamped News Feed: Enjoy faster loading times and smoother scrolling that make catching up on local news a breeze.
New Play Video Feed: Dive into a dynamic video feed that brings local stories to life in a whole new way.
Enhanced In-App Browser: Access external links quickly and efficiently, right from the app, without any distractions.
Update your MyLocal app from your app store (version 2.73) now and start enjoying these great new features today!
P.S.: Start your MyLocal membership today to support MyLocal and The Lincolnite deliver you a better local news experience and honest journalism from across Lincolnshire.
P.P.S.: We have some huge things in the pipeline, stay tuned!
Exciting news for MyLocal app users and The Lincolnite readers! Our latest update is now available to download from your app store and comes packed with the best local news experience you can enjoy.
Revamped News Feed: Enjoy faster loading times and smoother scrolling that make catching up on local news a breeze.
New Play Video Feed: Dive into a dynamic video feed that brings local stories to life in a whole new way.
Enhanced In-App Browser: Access external links quickly and efficiently, right from the app, without any distractions.
Update your MyLocal app from your app store (version 2.73) now and start enjoying these great new features today!
P.S.: Start your MyLocal membership today to support MyLocal and The Lincolnite deliver you a better local news experience and honest journalism from across Lincolnshire.
P.P.S.: We have some huge things in the pipeline, stay tuned!