Roadways gritted for the first time this winter season

On Tuesday evening, 1 December, all roadways of A, A1 and B category streets were gritted with anti-skid material for the first time this winter season—seven pieces of machinery were at work.

During the night into Wednesday and on Wednesday morning, driving conditions in the city were satisfactory. The Municipal Administration’s Winter Service continues to monitor weather forecasts and the situation on the streets. Gritting the roadways was necessary because black ice began to form in some places. Meteorologists are forecasting slight frost in the coming days, but no precipitation. Under such conditions, for example on bridges, at intersections with heavy traffic or on sections of road exposed to unobstructed winds, black ice may form.

To ensure traffic safety on the city streets, the Winter Service, which organises the winter maintenance of street carriageways, has been operating around the clock since 25 October. This ensures that Liepāja’s streets are cleaned in accordance with the city regulations “On the Requirements for the Daily Maintenance of Streets and Supervision of Their Implementation”, as well as under the contract concluded with the road maintenance provider, the Riga-registered company SIA “Clean R”.

At the first signs of snow or ice forming on the roadways, gritting with anti-skid material—a salt/sand mixture or moistened salt—is commenced. If necessary, snow is also cleared or snow removal is organised. All the preparatory work required to switch to the winter operating regime was completed by both the Municipal Administration and the company “Clean R” according to the planned schedule—by the middle of October.

Ģirts Baltrums, Head of the Territory Maintenance Department of “Clean R”, reports that a total of 15 pieces of machinery have been prepared for winter operations in Liepāja, intended for treating various surfaces with anti-skid material and for cleaning. The necessary quantities of the sand-and-salt mixture and technical salt have been procured. Reserves of anti-skid, or gritting, material have been established with the calculation that they will ensure the cleaning of streets and roads for two months even in the event of a sudden and prolonged winter. If necessary, additional anti-skid material can be procured within one week, which will make it possible to ensure high-quality maintenance of the roadways.

In accordance with the regulations on the daily maintenance of city streets and supervision of their implementation, priority is given to cleaning main roads and streets served by public transport. Under the regulations, in changeable weather conditions, a snow layer of up to 6 cm, a layer of wet snow and salt/sand mixture of up to 3 cm, or even ice ruts of up to 3 cm are permissible on roadways during winter.

To monitor the performance of the assigned work, the street-gritting/cleaning machinery is equipped with a GPS system that records the movement of the machinery around the city. This is an additional option alongside the visual monitoring carried out by the Winter Service’s around-the-clock duty officer. During this winter season—from 25 October to 10 April 2021—a total of EUR 578,164 has been reserved to pay for roadway maintenance works.

The Municipal Administration and the street maintenance provider urge drivers not to take risks, to replace summer tyres with tyres suitable for the winter season and to observe the basic rules of safe driving—maintain a safe distance and choose a speed appropriate to the weather and road conditions. 

Data on the maintenance of Liepāja’s streets during the 2020/2021 winter season

The following machinery is planned to be involved in providing the service:

vehicles for spreading anti-skid material—10 units

tractors for loading and pushing aside snow—5 units

Areas to be cleaned:

length of street roadways—219.23 km

street roadways, with the combined length of both lanes—407.86 km

squares—5750 m2

cycleways—approximately 50 km.

Projected quantities of gritting material:

salt and sand mixture—up to 1000 m3

moistened salt—up to 2000 t.

Residents can report the condition of the city streets during the winter season:

by calling the around-the-clock duty officer: 22 011 963, also using WhatsApp;

by email: komunala.parvalde@liepaja.lv;

via the Twitter account: @kpliepaja;

via the Facebook account: @kpliepaja.

Information prepared by

Aigars Štāls

Public Relations Specialist of the Municipal Administration

Telephone: 26 444 290

Email: aigars.stals@liepaja.lv