THE county's gritting fleet has been equipped with technology which will help ensure roads are treated correctly while also reducing waste.

All of the trucks are now equipped with on-board technology which can calculate the salt spread-rates based on the road temperatures ensuring highways are treated correctly while reducing potential waste.

Also, pre-wet salt treated with brine is used to reduce the amount that bounces off the carriageway and it also works quicker when on roads.

Councillor John Smith OBE, county council cabinet member for highways, said: "Our gritting teams do a fantastic job each winter working to keep our roads safe when temperatures drop, most of the time when we're all tucked up in bed.

"Although the crews head out during the winter months planning takes place all year around and over the last couple of years we've been one of the first in the country to introduce new technologies to make the operation more efficient.

"Not only does this improve the treatment of our roads but it also helps save the taxpayer money too.

"We'll be employing all of these improvements over the coming months as the crews treat thousands of miles of road when freezing conditions bite."

This year depots in Worcestershire are fully stocked with 15,000 tonnes of salt.

When temperatures drop below freezing, crews will head out on designated routes, totalling around 1,500 miles.

More than 1,200 grit bins are full and ready to be used.

To report empty grit bins, log on to www.worcestershire.gov.uk/reportit.