MORE salt is being made available to allow better access to town centres during the cold spell.

Gloucestershire County Council has taken the decision in order to support local businesses and encourage shoppers.

District councils have been informed that more salt is available and are being asked to focus on clearing town centre pavements to ensure people can get to shops.

Help from local Chambers of Commerce to help treat footways is also being requested.

Although some parish and town councils already collect the salt from highways depots to ensure their local bins remain stocked, those that don’t are being encouraged to follow suit.

To be able to provide the additional salt the council is using a mix of white salt and grit, allowing grit to be conserved for treating roads.

Cllr Stan Waddington, cabinet member for environment, said: "We know one of the biggest concerns people have at the moment is slippery pavements and town centres.

"It is not physically possible for us to treat the county’s 1,500 miles of pavement ourselves but we are significantly increasing the amount of salt available to the district and parish councils to treat on our behalf.

"Working together we can help support our local businesses by improving access to town centres and encouraging people to visit.

"I would also ask residents to do their bit - we’re still filling grit bins so please use this in your neighbourhood."

Snow is predicted for later today and tomorrow, but the forecast is improving for later in the week.

To keep the county moving, the council will continue to grit all A roads and a limited number of B roads – that carry 75% of county’s traffic, in line with Government guidance. Snow plough wardens and farmers are also on standby in the more rural areas.