Councillor Duncan MacIntyre, spokesperson for roads and transportation explains:

“Information from forecasters suggests tonight will be especially cold – too cold for salt to prevent roads from freezing. Once the temperature goes below minus seven degrees Celsius salt alone is ineffective. While we’ll still be treating priority routes we’ve switched to using a mixture of salt and grit. This means we can preserve our salt stocks by not spreading when we know it’s a waste of resource but still help give some grip on the roads.

“Our winter maintenance teams have been out gritting and ploughing, trying keep the roads safe but we can’t always beat the weather. Our advice during the cold spell is to only make journeys that are absolutely essential, and to drive slowly and carefully if you have to go out. ”

There is also a risk at these low temperatures of water pipes freezing, which presents a risk to properties from flooding if pipes burst then thaw. Anyone with external taps should turn off the water or insulate the pipes to help prevent flooding.

Information about school closures and road treatment can be found on Argyll and Bute Council’s web site www.argyll-bute.gov.uk or by following us on Twitter – argyllandbute

Roads and lighting faults can be reported by calling 0800 37 36 35