WORCESTERSHIRE County Council's gritting fleet will be treating the county's roads this week following the forecast of more snow.

Gritting of primary routes began at 3pm on Tuesday with secondary routes to be treated once the primaries are completed.

The Met Office has predicted that road surface temperatures could plunge as low as -7 overnight while snow showers are also a possibility resulting in 1 to 3cm of snow on lower ground and 5cm in higher areas.

The council’s Winter Maintenance Teams will continue to monitor the situation with reviews of the weather forecast taking place several times per day, including during the evening and at night.

Gritting bins are being refilled across the county and the council has asked people only to use this grit on the roads and pavements, not on their own driveways.

With snowfall possible the council has again urged motorists to be extremely careful if they have to take to the roads as the slushy conditions will likely result in more challenging driving conditions. The advice remains that motorists should not assume roads have been gritted and to temper their driving accordingly.

Drivers who have to make journeys in the morning are asked to heed the following advice: Before you set off on your journey, do you have:

• Anti-freeze in your cooling system

• Screen wash additive in your windscreen washers

• At least 1.6mm depth of tread and the correct air pressures in your tyres

• Clean lenses on your headlights

• Properly working heaters and demisters

Planning your journey is vital in adverse conditions:

• Ask yourself if your journey is necessary - if the answer is no, or not sure, then don’t go

• Check the local weather forecast

• Check the driving conditions on your route with your local radio station

• Take extra equipment with you such as a mobile phone, spade, towrope, torch, flask, warm and highly visible clothing and spare pieces of old carpet to place under your wheels for traction in case you get stuck in snow

• Make sure someone at your destination is expecting you at a certain time

• Adjust your driving to the conditions

Driving on ice or snow needs extra care:

• Use dipped headlights and drive more slowly than usual

• Allow up to ten times your normal stopping distance

• Keep your distance from vehicles ahead of you

• To avoid skidding, brake very gently or ease off the accelerator early

• If you have to abandon your vehicle try not to block the road; snow-ploughs, gritters and emergency vehicles may need to come past

• Keep windscreens clean For regular updates visit the council's website at worcestershire.gov.uk, or its 'gritter twitter' page at twitter.com/worcscc.

The council has warned people to take care on side roads and residential areas which are not on the main gritting routes as these could be particularly difficult to negotiate.

Elderly residents and the more vulnerable members of communities are likely to struggle the most in the conditions and so residents are being asked to pull together, especially with the prospect of more snow.

Parents have been asked to tune in to their local radio or visit the council website where regular updates on school closures will be posted.

The website will be updated until 8pm each night and from 7am in the morning.

Members of the public can also contact the Worcestershire HUB on 0845 607 2005 for highways inquires or 01905 765765 for more general enquiries. These numbers are available from 8am until 8pm Monday to Friday, and 9am to 5pm on Saturday.

Local radio will also boradcast updates from the following frequencies: BBC Hereford & Worcester 104FM, 104.6FM OR 94.7FM; Touch FM 102.0FM; Wyvern FM 102.8FM; The Wyre 107.2FM.