PEOPLE living in Aberdeen can apply for a free one-tonne salt bag to help tackle icy roads and pavements in their neighbourhood this winter.

Applications opened on Monday 14 September and will close on Sunday 25 October, with residents urged to apply early as deliveries will be carried out alongside the council’s winter gritting operations.

The salt can be used on public areas including roads and pavements, but not private garden paths, and applicants must have a secure and accessible place to store the bag.

Any residents or groups which would like a one-tonne bag should apply via Gritting before 25 October. The community saltbags are delivered free of charge and are removed at the end of winter.

Aberdeen City Council said the scheme would help communities respond to icy conditions alongside its own gritting operations.

Mark Reilly, chief operating officer at Aberdeen City Council, said staff could not cover every road and pavement during periods of severe weather.

He said: “Unfortunately though, Council staff can’t be everywhere all the time. There are 620 miles of roads in Aberdeen, slightly more than the distance from the city to Paris, and 1,242 miles of pavements, the distance from here to Rome.”

He said community salt bags and grit bins would help residents tackle icy conditions in their local areas.

The council will also provide large community salt bins at locations across the city, including Bridge of Don, Garthdee, Torry, Union Row, Northfield, Kingswells, Dyce and Tillydrone.

A total of 50 yellow grit bins will also be trialled with larger-capacity containers this winter.

The new bins can be lifted by a lorry-mounted crane or telehandler when empty, allowing them to be replaced with full bins rather than manually refilled.

Community salt bags will be delivered free of charge and removed at the end of winter.

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