Heavy snow and ice cause chaos on Reading's roads

Maxwell Kusi Obodum • Published 21 Dec 2009 18:50 13 Comments

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HUNDREDS of motorists are stuck in their cars as heavy snow continues to cause chaos on Reading's roads.

All major routes including the M4, A4, IDR, A329M and A33 are gridlocked as commuters struggle to get home from work and Christmas shoppers try to escape the town centre.

The extreme weather conditions and freezing temperatures have turned roads into ice rinks with gritters being unable to battle through the traffic jams.

Two Reading Buses were in collision with a row of stationary cars in Russell Street, West Reading, shortly before 5.30pm and a car towing a boat is blocking the middle and inside lane on the M4 between junctions 10 and 11.

A car skidded on the snow and slammed into a house in Thatcham, a car overturned in ice near Newbury and a lorry and another car were in collision on the M4 near Hungerford.

Motorists were forced to abandon their cars on Peppard Road, Caversham, after struggling to drive up the hill and hundreds of shoppers have left their vehicles in the town centre after queuing for more than three hours to leave the Oracle and Broad Street Mall shopping centres.

Meanwhile police closed Langley Hill in Tilehurst, Sonning Bridge and Beech Lane, Lower Earley

Reading and Newbury Buses were forced to suspend their services from 3.55pm until the morning because vehicles were unable to get through, but trains from Reading station are still running.

Company chief executive James Freeman said: "I'm really sorry the only thing to say to people is please don't travel as there's no way of travelling by bus and by car. Make the best you can of walking home and staying somewhere dry and warm until it abates."

The snow, which started falling at 1pm, is forecast to continue until the early hours of this morning before temperatures drop below freezing.

Reading Borough Council held an emergency meeting earlier this evening and Royal Berkshire Hospital is urging night staff who live within three miles of the hospital to walk into work.

Hospital spokesman Joe Wise said: "Our main priority is getting staff into work who are on duty tonight but who are stuck in the gridlock. We are also working on plans to get staff in from further afield."

He confirmed hospital chiefs had cancelled all elective surgery appointments tomorrow but urged pregnant woman and those needing emergency surgery to dial 999 rather than attempt to travel by car.

Accross town staff are bedding down in offices rather than risking driving home.

How has the snow affected your journeys in the region? Comment below or contact 0118 955 3305.

ENDS

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sam
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Dec 21, 19:43
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thank you for a genuinely useful sum up!

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Howard Thomas
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Dec 21, 20:44
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"Reading Borough council held an emergency meeting"..............Perhaps they would be so good as to issue a statement explaining why the roads have not been gritted over the last few days! Obviously they have not 'learned the lessons' from the mess that was the cold spell as recently as last February, when a lack of gritters/snow ploughs caused all kinds of problems!

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tuesday
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Dec 22, 00:25
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thanks to radio berkshire who keep messages coming through about the road situation

boo to some of the 4x4 drivers who think that just because they have 4x4's gives them the right to charge past other car drivers

and yes, where were the gritters that are usually out in force when there are temps of +5 but when we need them they are not to be seen and that emergency meeting seemed to go on for rather a long time according to the radio, perhaps instead of talking they should have put some fluro jackets on and assisted drivers

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Anon
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Dec 22, 08:07
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I live in Canada, a bit of snow does not stop the buses! The bus driver I saw today seemed to lack experience in driving, e.g. constant rev on the engine, steering in the wrong direction, panic after a small bump on a curb with the tyre. Perhaps defensive driving skills training would help for next year?

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Barry
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Dec 22, 08:38
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tuesday, as a 4x4 owner myself in all that yesterday, it's not a matter of barging past. I put the gearbox into four-wheel drive and managed to drive all the way home with no trouble at all (past wheel-spinning £50k Audis and BMWs). It's just that we could pass, so why shouldn't we? The rest of the year I have to take 'green' comments about my 4x4, but it really came into its own yesterday and was just fantastic.

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cheltboy
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Dec 22, 09:03
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I am never going to visit Reading ever again......

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Anna
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Dec 22, 09:21
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It's my birthday today, and the snow means that it is impossible for people to get to me. A bus overturned at the top of St Anne's Road in Caversham, and there are abandoned cars all down my road.

The council have failed us. They have a duty to protect us and grit the roads, and they didn't.

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Rich
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Dec 22, 10:47
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As already said by others well done BBC Radio Berkshire for the constant travel updates it's just a shame that once you were caught in traffic yesterday there was not a lot you could do! The local councils/authorities acted too late as always!

I have to say on the 4x4 subject a friend of mine was forced to abandon his car on the back roads near Theale shortly after picking his son up from day care. If it wasn't for a kind passing 4x4 driver that spotted them walking and picked them up from the side of the road to give them a lift home, he would have had to keep walking with his 20 month old son wrapped in his coat.

I personally saw more examples of bad driving form big ‘German' cars driving like they have priority over everyone else. Mainly overtaking everyone cueing patiently on the M4J10];A329(M) slip road just to force their way in at the last moment.

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TS
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Dec 22, 14:03
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1515 Hours yesterday Monday 21/12/09 I left work near Dee Road and was able to cycle/walk along Tilehurst Road down Russell St passed the Bus that had collided with parked cars and the van that was blocking the road, eventually to find my family which were stuck at Shepperds Hill.

The 3 Newbury police officers who were at the A329M slip Road (hill) had no hope of getting traffic moving without a Grit/Snow plough . The Reading Council Gritting Lorry that the Police and myself had earlier passed had apparently gone round the roundabout and returned to Reading (according to other drivers that we asked) - Presumably as Sheppards Hill and the Sliproad are in Wokingham!!!!!!

I left my bicycle at home and returned to wait in the car with my family eventually 5 hours after leaving Woodley they got home.

What has happened to the old fashioned yellow Grit boxes that used to be at the side of the roads especially Hills. Will the councils ensure that they co-ordinate with Emergency services as to where their gritting lorries are!

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TS
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Dec 22, 14:07
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1515 Hours yesterday Monday 21/12/09 I left work near Dee Road and was able to cycle/walk along Tilehurst Road down Russell St passed the Bus that had collided with parked cars and the van that was blocking the road, eventually to find my family which were stuck at Shepperds Hill.

The 3 Newbury police officers who were at the A329M slip Road (hill) had no hope of getting traffic moving without a Grit/Snow plough . The Reading Council Gritting Lorry that the Police and myself had earlier passed had apparently gone round the roundabout and returned to Reading (according to other drivers that we asked) - Presumably as Sheppards Hill and the Sliproad are in Wokingham!!!!!!

I left my bicycle at home and returned to wait in the car with my family eventually 5 hours after leaving Woodley they got home.

What has happened to the old fashioned yellow Grit boxes that used to be at the side of the roads especially Hills. Will the councils ensure that they co-ordinate with Emergency services as to where their gritting lorries are!

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FlowerGirl
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Dec 22, 16:40
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Myself and 4 others spent around 4 hours yesterday pushing cars up New Hill in purley, walking elderly residents home and redirecting traffic to a safe parking area or an alternative route. I believe the council were especially to blame for the chaos on the roads, they would rather spend their time and OUR money on stupid insignificant plans then too make sure there is a good supply of grit available. The gritting lorry did not pass us until 6pm, by this thime the damage had already been done and when grited to roads were quickly covered in thick snow again. In my oppinion the gritters should have been out all sunday night and throughout the day yesterday, but obviously our oppinions dont matter. We would get more sense out of a snow covered brick wall than the council.

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FlowerGirl
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Dec 22, 16:41
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Myself and 4 others spent around 4 hours yesterday pushing cars up New Hill in purley, walking elderly residents home and redirecting traffic to a safe parking area or an alternative route. I believe the council were especially to blame for the chaos on the roads, they would rather spend their time and OUR money on stupid insignificant plans then too make sure there is a good supply of grit available. The gritting lorry did not pass us until 6pm, by this thime the damage had already been done and when grited to roads were quickly covered in thick snow again. In my oppinion the gritters should have been out all sunday night and throughout the day yesterday, but obviously our oppinions dont matter. We would get more sense out of a snow covered brick wall than the council.

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tuesday
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Dec 23, 19:29
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Barry - I did say "some" 4x4 drivers and yes "some" were charging past and the knock on effect is a massive spray of slush all over the rest of us, also, it was nervous enough time driving without "some" 4x4 drivers being inconsiderate - naturally on that day I wished I had a 4x4 but I can assure you, I would have thought about other road users and not driven in the manner that some of the 4x4 drivers I came across

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