Icy roads safety 'under control'

David Sparks, chairman of the Local Government Association's transport board, warned that public panic over the exceptional snowfall was not helping and urged calm.

"There are supplies on the way. But the most important thing is the question of allocating the resources that we've got now to those areas most in need," he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme. "The arrangements have been made, we shouldn't panic, it's all under control."

Salt supplies are en route from Spain and Germany amid shortages which have forced one council to switch to table salt to make its roads safe after running out of rock salt.

The severe wintry weather shows no signs of ending, but Mr Sparks said he was confident the authorities could deal with the situation and avoid paralysis on the roads.

"There is central control, involving the Local Government Association, the salt suppliers, the Highways Agency and the Government, that is continually meeting and reviewing the situation - the weather forecast, existing supplies - in order that the country keeps going safely."

Councils could not have afforded to keep enough salt in store to deal with the present conditions, he said.

The second Severn M4 Crossing is likely to remain shut for safety reasons. The bridge, built in 1996, was closed due to adverse weather for the first time in its history on Friday morning after large sheets of ice fell from overhead gantries and smashed the windscreens of five vehicles. The old M48 Severn Bridge Crossing was also shut for most of the day but is now fully open.

Meanwhile, the Department of Transport rejected suggestions that Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon reportedly called on Britons to "stop whingeing" and queried why more drivers have not acquired snow chains for their cars.

A DoT spokesman said: "Mr Hoon's comments have been completely taken out of context. He used an example about buying snow chains to highlight the fact that there is a judgment call about how much to invest in equipment to deal with the worst weather conditions we have faced in 18 years. He did not say drivers have only themselves to blame - indeed he has every sympathy for drivers who have been affected."