councils getting out of paying farmers for snow clearance

[Happy hillbily]

You have to be authorised to go out.
We did some roads before being authorised to help the community.
Some were very grateful others didn’t even acknowledge it.

I have a neighbour like that, after me bollocking him for just dumping his car in the middle of a gateway back in Decembers snow,
he parked (got stuck on cheap road tyres) his 4wd Rav4 1/2 a mile away at the bottom of a steep hill this last snow. Anyway the road was cleared after a few days but he still couldn't get home as the track he has access on over my field was still under 5ft drifts. Feeling sorry for him I did the neighbourly thing and ploughed the track so he could get his car closer to home. That was last thursday and the bugger still hasn't been round to say thank you !
Probably saved him an hour a day walking back and forward to his car, if he can't be bothered to say thank you, he can clear the snow himself next time. Bloody townies.

 

[JCMaloney]

http://twycrosszoo.org/event/snow-heroes-offer/

According to that I could rack up, get in for free...... and all I did was got to work in the snow!!
I don`t want/need a pat on the head or such like....I chose my job and get paid to do it.

PS: Plenty of farmers & 4x4 clubs round here mucked in & aren`t on the list so I wouldn`t go out of principal.

 

[rob1]

As my old man Ranted last week-
Farmers pay no business rates
No road tax
No inheritance tax
No capital gains tax
No fuel duty
Get grants for a new shed
And get a area payment cheque every year ..
Least they can do is clear the bloody road every 3 years when it snows for 24 hours

Made me chuckle abit ...

least we do is provide cheap raw materials for the food people eat, I think they do pretty well out of the deal

 

[Northeastfarmer]

Very short sighted, if that's the case.
Interesting to see what happens next time we have snow....

This weekend

 

[Still Farming]

Hope their ready

 

[sulky]

i have just been talking with someone who told me that councils are getting out of paying farmers for snow clearance and the excuse is that tractors and telehandlers were using red diesel

is it the council getting out or thier contractors here in north yorkshire most snow clearance is the responcebility of highways north yorkshire who are rainsway construction servises a division of balfour beatty they are responsible for all roads , exept some main roads coverd by highways agency themselves / one of my family has a contract with RCS only allowed out when phone call made / has to do risk assesment /attend safety courses /just had competance test to drive snow plough/and jcb loadall to load gritter at council depot .just hope we dont have an emergency round here as he,s giving up because of all red tape (bulls**t)

 

[Bobthebuilder]

we have been told to apply to someone at local authority office and hopefully they will pay for fuel used, have done and will wait n see, got a letter through post on Monday from local parish council thanking me for me efforts at clearing roads, then today 1 of the other lads from local village farm called in with a bottle of wine and some cans of larger for me saying it was from the parish council

 

[Whitepeak]

Not sure what the situation is in Derbyshire but there seemed to be loads of young lads flying about chasing snowdrifts. And there is one young contractor planning on importing a container full of snowblowers from America specially.

 

[Tarw Coch]

Skanski had 3 tractors ready to go and plow snow. But no one with a ticket to drive them so they sat there tooled up doing nothing!

Apparently our local council depot has a snow blower that's at least 30 years old and has never been used, no one has the right ticket to use it.

 

[renewablejohn]

Not sure what the situation is in Derbyshire but there seemed to be loads of young lads flying about chasing snowdrifts. And there is one young contractor planning on importing a container full of snowblowers from America specially.

But then I have been in Buxton in June and it was snowing.

 

[Happy hillbily]

Not sure what the situation is in Derbyshire but there seemed to be loads of young lads flying about chasing snowdrifts. And there is one young contractor planning on importing a container full of snowblowers from America specially.

My uncle back in the 80s bought a few new snowblowers and bought a reverse drive mf 2680 and a reverse drive Mb trac 1300 to power them. In the last 30 years, the tractors and blowers have been together maybe a handful of times, and now, all of the above are quietly returning to nature in the corner of a field. We won't go any further about the little unimog based blower and the vohl/county snowblower that he bought in the 90s that are parked up in the same field.
Buy a tractor and a big snow plough, and a digger . At least a tractor and digger will get used for other work throughout the year.

 

[Still Farming]

we have been told to apply to someone at local authority office and hopefully they will pay for fuel used, have done and will wait n see, got a letter through post on Monday from local parish council thanking me for me efforts at clearing roads, then today 1 of the other lads from local village farm called in with a bottle of wine and some cans of larger for me saying it was from the parish council

Don't get a smile off em here ?

 

[renewablejohn]

My uncle back in the 80s bought a few new snowblowers and bought a reverse drive mf 2680 and a reverse drive Mb trac 1300 to power them. In the last 30 years, the tractors and blowers have been together maybe a handful of times, and now, all of the above are quietly returning to nature in the corner of a field. We won't go any further about the little unimog based blower and the vohl/county snowblower that he bought in the 90s that are parked up in the same field.
Buy a tractor and a big snow plough, and a digger . At least a tractor and digger will get used for other work throughout the year.

MB Trac 1300 would now be a collectors item.

 

[Happy hillbily]

MB Trac 1300 would now be a collectors item.

Yes but he won't sell it as it's worth some money
Same goes for a roadless 980, a genuine 1000 hr county 1174 FC with 5 wheel coupling, county 1164, chayside loader, a couple of poclain excavators and another couple of dozen old tractors and machinery

 

[Robt]

Isnt helping your community what its all about? after all its what makes us human. Helping others is very rewarding and good for ones mental health. As ive said before, if everyone had telehandlers at their disposal their would have been traffic jams of people wanting to help.
If you didnt get paid or thanked, just rejoice in the good feeling you have of helping others.

 

[Still Farming]

Isnt helping your community what its all about? after all its what makes us human. Helping others is very rewarding and good for ones mental health. As ive said before, if everyone had telehandlers at their disposal their would have been traffic jams of people wanting to help.
If you didnt get paid or thanked, just rejoice in the good feeling you have of helping others.

You are correct .
But it does wear very thin when you want something done or objection or against all farmers do ,to be "nice"all the time !

 

[Traffic dodger]

As the saying goes, job satisfaction never filled your belly.

 

[warksfarmer]

But do they appreciate it? Did the same here as did a few others. Guarantee we will be back in front of their pointing fingrs when something happens or upsets them. I can't wait for the parish council to cheep up. I'm gunning for them fraudsters.

They don’t around here in urban farming country so stuff them. We’ve got 4wd’s so the snow didn’t effect us in any way.

 

[steveR]

Used to be a simple system round here, Council provided a plough on the understanding if you got a call at 4am you would go out. A modest hourly rate was paid
Then the deskbound clowns got involved. Driver had to go on a course, Service records for the tractor had to be sent to the council. An "adequate " workshop had to be on site.

Most farmers said "not worth the hassle"

Exactly the same here for me. I took over from a retired farmer and got the pile of scrap Shropshire CC called a snowplough, and refurbed it and fitted onto our front linkage over several tractors from late 80's. Then Telford and Wrekin Council declared UDI and after a short period lost all the old SCC staff that understood roads maintenance and knew all the farmers who could help and if necessary would put a telehandler out on big drifts etc.

Then the jobsworths started... Plough had to be taken in to checking every summer, even if it had not moved since last summer. Ploughing became a perk of the Council staff, and sod the road clearance delays... farmer Operators had to go on a course to be shown how to operate a tractor, fit and use a plough...

The final straw was being told that we could only go out after 8am "when it was light" on the grounds of safety! Never mind that was when everyone was getting off to work and cluttering up the roads. Traditionally, I had opened up the roads to the local beet factory, and I needed to to have them swept before 6am to be sure of safe access and then start on the outlying areas. We were also tasked with the monitoring of snowfall, 2" and still falling, and get on the phone for an OK to get moving on the specific routes.

I gave up on the silly eedjits, but just do a bit on a voluntary basis locally with grit and the odd pass with a blade...

 

[Rowland]

I have a neighbour like that, after me bollocking him for just dumping his car in the middle of a gateway back in Decembers snow,
he parked (got stuck on cheap road tyres) his 4wd Rav4 1/2 a mile away at the bottom of a steep hill this last snow. Anyway the road was cleared after a few days but he still couldn't get home as the track he has access on over my field was still under 5ft drifts. Feeling sorry for him I did the neighbourly thing and ploughed the track so he could get his car closer to home. That was last thursday and the bugger still hasn't been round to say thank you !
Probably saved him an hour a day walking back and forward to his car, if he can't be bothered to say thank you, he can clear the snow himself next time. Bloody townies.

Did he know you did it for free ? Or do you think he thought you will be paid for doing it !