U-turn on grit bins after public outcry in Dudley
Dudley Council has performed a U-turn on its grit bins policy after backtracking on only refilling them once a year.
Bins will now be refilled as required while a review is carried out on the conclusions of a previous winter maintenance review ordered last year to save cash.
The first review was part of the budget approved in February 2025 but the removal of hundreds of bins caused an outcry during the recent cold snap.
Councillor Simon Phipps, Dudley cabinet member for economy and infrastructure, said: “I have requested a full review of the winter gritting service with a view to making it efficiently meet the needs of as many people as possible.
“No final decisions have been made on anything, including whether certain grit bins will be reinstated or not.
“I have also ordered that empty grit bins currently on the road network are refilled as necessary, rather than once a year as was previously the case.
“I would like to again commend our dedicated team of highways officers, who worked day and night with little rest to keep as many roads flowing as possible during Storm Goretti.”
Grit bins have been under the spotlight at the council since November 2024 when an order was signed cancelling requests for new bins, ceasing the annual refilling of bins while ‘alternative methods’ of winter maintenance were trialled, bins would only be refilled ‘based on service needs and risk’ and unused bins or those on gritting routes would be removed.
A second order signed in September 2025 confirmed the removal of around 270 bins that had been full of salt for three years along with a review of around 200 bins positioned within 25m of a highway gritting route.
The annual budget for winter maintenance in Dudley is £676,000 and the council hoped to save around £60,000 with the initial review.
Meanwhile the Conservative-led administration is facing calls from Labour opposition councillors to go further and reinstate bins that have already been removed ‘where there is a clear community need’.
The Labour group has put in a motion for debate on the issue and is now calling for an extraordinary meeting of the full council ahead of its scheduled meeting on January 29 to force a vote.
Councillor Shaukat Ali, deputy leader of the Labour group, who submitted the motion and request for the extra meeting, said: “Given the urgency of this matter and the real experiences residents were facing, it was expedient to call an extraordinary council meeting.
“During the recent spell of adverse weather, people were slipping, roads were unsafe, and communities were being put at risk.
“The Conservative administration must put right its wrong and restore grit bins, as this is an issue that affects residents in every ward and neighbourhood across the borough.
“I hope the motion will receive support from across the chamber.”
Speaking in early January as storm Goretti swept across the nation, council leader, Cllr Patrick Harley, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “Ones that are being missed because of the cold snap; we will re-establish them.
“If we need to put some back clearly we will, we will have a full review but it is pointless to reinstate bins that are never used.”
