Cloudless skies have led to frosty mornings in recent days, and Liberal Democrat councillors say they are concerned that not enough is being done to grit footpaths in Jesmond and elsewhere in the city.

With Newcastle City Council needing to be save £12m for the next three years, council-led gritting of all pedestrian areas is practically impossible. However, at a council meeting in January, Lib Dem concillor for Ouseburn Gareth Kane proposed a “promote active travel all year round” motion, and highlighted areas, such as Armstrong Bridge in Jesmond, that were greatly affected by wintry conditions. The bridge, he said, becomes an “ice rink” during the winter.

He said that while major roads were being gritted for cars, key active travel routes for cyclists and pedestrians were not being treated during extreme weather conditions. “There is a clear breach of transport hierarchy.,” he said. Transport hierarchy suggests the prioritisation of walking and cycling over transport by privately owned vehicles such as cars.

The Lib Dem motion sought to promote active travel 365 days a year through the gritting of cycle routes and footpaths. However, with 600 miles of roads and 1,100 miles of footpath in the city, deputy council leader Karen Kilgour said the council could not grit the entire network, and had to prioritise the routes that help keep the city moving. “We simply don’t have a revenue budget that could do this,” she said.