Here we go again

The wintry conditions began falling late last Friday and piled up across high and low ground throughout the weekend.

North Lanarkshire was smothered in a blanket of white leading to a manic Monday morning as some schools were closed and transport to and from schools was cancelled.

Members of the public hit out at what some described as a "shocking and pathetic" response to the snow by the local authority.

The News has received complaints from locals who still feel that sizeable parts of Cumbernauld are being ignored by gritters.

Last year the same accusation was levelled at North Lanarkshire Council and history would appear to be repeating itself - after it emerged that some of the vehicles had broken down.

Paul Kirkpatrick of Landsdowne Drive in Carrickstone said: ''The snow started falling here at 11am on Friday night and we have not seen one gritter out here. In our street we have hills on both sides and we just cannot move.

"What I would like to know is how 1 million can be justified on the neon waves project on the A80 when our streets cannot be gritted properly. What exactly are we getting for our council tax?'' said Mr Kirkpatrick.

A Carbrain resident who cannot walk has also been in touch – after he remained trapped in his home.

Colin Watson of Torbrex Road said: ''At the moment I have two of my legs in plaster. I telephoned a taxi firm to take me to Asda and they told me to wait at the end of the road. But I cannot get out into the snow - there have been no gritters down here. I would like to ask North Lanarkshire Council how someone in my position is supposed to get out and about?"

Meanwhile there are claims Balloch has been left untouched by gritters.

Martin Dyer who lives in Southfield Drive said that motorists have been unable to move their vehicles out this hilly area which is dominated by the one housing estate.

He said: ''I believe this is even worse than last year. Have the council learned absolutely nothing? Why can they not spend more money on getting more gritters out?

"The situation is an absolute disgrace."

Cumbernauld resident, William McAllister, (78) from Allanfauld Road said that many elderly and fragile people had been left stranded in their homes due to roads not being cleared or gritted.

He said: "I've lived in Cumbernauld for a long time and we've seen snow like this before. But the council aren't doing anything about it.

"There are lots of old people where I stay, many older than me, and they're totally stranded. It's shocking."

Some of the worst hit areas were Balloch, Banton, Carbrain, large parts of Kilsyth, Tweechar and Queenzieburn.

The towns were hit by further snow fall on Monday evening and Tuesday morning as temperatures stayed in the minus degrees.

Sam Clarke, media and public affairs manager for North Lanarkshire Council said on Monday: "All primary routes are open and passable with care and we are continuing to grit these. At present four secondary routes are being treated and more will be added as resources allow. Our grounds maintenance teams are assisting our roads crews. We would ask the public, in the event of an emergency, to call the emergency services on 999."

On Tuesday North Lanarkshire Council updated their winter Twitter account stating that all NLC schools were open with few exceptions, one of which was Banton Primary School in Kilsyth.

The council suggested that the best place for information updates would be on its dedicated website at www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk or NLCs Twitter account at Twitter.com/nlcwinter.