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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think you don't have the right to get places when it snows?

112 replies

kokosnuss · 15/01/2018 20:11

The local newspaper has posted it's now-traditional "OMG SNOW'S FORECAST, CHAOS IS IMMINENT" Facebook post and all the comments are along the lines of "oh great, not getting anywhere that day then, not with our incompetent council".

I do think councils have some responsibility to keep major roads passable if they can, so that emergency vehicles and other key traffic can keep moving.

But AIBU to think you don't have the automatic right to continue completely as normal when it snows? Isn't there a case for just accepting that the weather is bad and some things might not happen?

OP posts:
TheQueenOfWands · 15/01/2018 20:12

People are weird.

Being snowed in is my idea of bliss...

Phosphorus · 15/01/2018 20:13

If you are in the UK, I really don't think the snowfall is ever enough to justify the delays caused.

It's ridiculous.

FrostyThirties0 · 15/01/2018 20:13

Yes and no. Social trips maybe but lots of people need to still get to work.

Original poster
kokosnuss · 15/01/2018 20:16

FrostyThirties Indeed, and I'm sure those who really need to be at work (e.g. nurses etc) would get there much more easily if others who could work from home, or didn't really need to go out, stayed at home. The more people take to the roads in hazardous conditions, the more likely it is that one of them crashes and worst case scenario, someone is hurt, best case scenario, it causes massive traffic jams.

OP posts:
GinnyJumperoo · 15/01/2018 20:17

All very well to say that. And for the police and local authorities to make statements such as "don't travel unless completely necessary".

But it all means fuck all if you have an employer who is unsympathetic. Plenty of employers give zero fucks about the weather conditions and will dock pay/discipline etc as a result.

Kursk · 15/01/2018 20:17

Used to like in the UK, now live somewhere where 5ft of snow over the course of the winter is normal.

When it snows it has to be more that 6” for anything to even consider closing.

If I moved back to the UK, now I have learned to cope with snow I would probably be annoyed that nothing was open!Grin

Idontevencareanymore · 15/01/2018 20:18

It's never feet deep. Walk if you really have to.

PickAChew · 15/01/2018 20:18

People still need to get to work. Ok, not everything is essential and some work can be done at home, but people still have rubbish to clear, people still need health care or social care, people already at work need to get home...

PickAChew · 15/01/2018 20:24

Massive slow X post!

Last snow but one, we were still in a hilly village and DH had to collect ds2 from school, 8 miles away, because our buses couldn't get through because it was s.too steep and slippery.

We're in the city, now, and lower down, so it's gone much faster.

Skowvegas · 15/01/2018 20:25

If you need to get places in snow it makes sense to buy a 4WD and/or snow tyres. At least, that's what we did knowing we'd be living somewhere with lots of snow. They plough as fast as they can but they can't be everywhere at once.

stickytoffeevodka · 15/01/2018 20:28

It's all very well saying that people shouldn't drive unless it's necessary, but how do you determine necessary?

I missed work a few weeks ago due to snow - the road out of my town was closed due to two lorries crashing at the top and the gritters/police couldn't open the road until mid-afternoon. It was bloody annoying - I tried to get in twice but got turned 'round. So I lost a days pay.

Luckily my employer is very sympathetic (it helped that my manager also got delayed) but not everyone can afford to lose money just because the weather is bad. So they make an effort and accidents happen.

I think the UK handles snow appallingly, mind you.

Tipsntoes · 15/01/2018 20:29

We were in Finland last winter and the roads are used in much the same way as they are in the summer, despite several feet of snow. However, this is not because the council clear the roads, it's because the cars have appropriate wheels/tyres and people know how to drive in the conditions.

We had a couple of inches of snow last year and the place did grind to a halt, FB was awash with outrage at the incompetent council. However, it had been raining hard at 7:30am, the snow started at about 8am, by 9am we'd got those couple of inches. What exactly was the council supposed to do?

OTOH if drivers understood how to drive in the conditions and had their cars properly equipped there would have been far less chaos. Of course they don't though because it happens once every few years. '

Situp · 15/01/2018 20:31

YANBU

We live in Austria and snow is immediately cleared and roads are gritted so we are never inconvenienced by snow.

However, we pay for it. We pay a monthly fee to have the snow cleared from the pavement outside our house, which is our responsibility and a significant part of tax money is spent on this. We also legally have to have winter tyres on during the winter which cost hundreds of pounds to buy, maintain, store and fit.

The Uk can have great snow management but with the unpredictability of winters, is it worth paying for it when councils have so many other services to fund?

Sirzy · 15/01/2018 20:32

Sometimes you need to get to places though. Last proper snow we had was January 2010 and battling to get to the hospital with a seriously ill baby was a nightmare trip. Many of the nurses ended up sleeping at the hospital because it simply wasn’t safe enough for them to travel home and the transfer ds really needed couldn’t happen because the nearest hospital with bed was about 200 miles away so it was deemed unsafe due to the weather.

So ye sometimes the weather really does mess things up!

RatRolyPoly · 15/01/2018 20:33

Well look, we are all paying towards the roads. I guess the idea is that the service you're expecting to receive in exchange for your tax money is that council would do their best to keep your roads in good working order using the means and equipment at their disposal. That's kind of reasonable.

NotACleverName · 15/01/2018 20:35

It's never feet deep. Walk if you really have to.

Yes. I'll just walk the 8 miles to work in snow if needs be.

stickytoffeevodka · 15/01/2018 20:36

It's never feet deep. Walk if you really have to.

Yeah, I'll just walk the 48 miles to work and back Hmm

Farmerswife36 · 15/01/2018 20:38

People are pathetic and need to learn how to drive in snowy conditions . Honestly for the amount of snow we get it's laughable how ott people get and declare themselves "snowed in"

coconuttella · 15/01/2018 20:39

One problem is that when it snows it’s often around freezing point, and even if it is well below freezing it often doesn’t stay that way, so we have icy stretches and slush which is far harder to get around in than powdery snow where the temperature remains well below freezing for weeks on end.

QuestionableMouse · 15/01/2018 20:39

I'd get a warning if I phoned work and said I couldn't get in because of the snow.

stickytoffeevodka · 15/01/2018 20:42

Honestly for the amount of snow we get it's laughable how ott people get and declare themselves "snowed in"

Well, it's hardly our fault if the roads are closed, is it? I live in Cumbria - when it snows/gets icy, all the mountain passes shut and most of the narrow country lanes are impassable because they don't get gritted.

I agree the UK doesn't have the infrastructure to deal with snow, though. We don't get enough of it so councils don't bother to invest in decent numbers of gritters, for example. Most people don't buy snow tyres/chains because the amount of time you're going to use them is so small! We're not a country that gets 4-6 months guaranteed snow, after all.

Llangollen · 15/01/2018 20:43

AIBU to think you don't have the automatic right to continue completely as normal when it snows?

Yes, YABU

I can understand that it's not snowing enough and frequently enough to justify a "snow budget". It doesn't mean life can stop, and people are more than right to expect at least the trains to run!

I wish parents could send their kids with the proper attire, instead of completely ignoring the weather which translate as the whole class being stranded indoors. Kids hate it, teachers hate it but if they kept a couple of the "snowflakes" inside, they would not hear the end of it - and who would stay to supervise?

Boulshired · 15/01/2018 20:43

If countries are guaranteed snow they can be prepared, if like this country it is unpredictable it would be throwing money away preparing for a chance of snow. It is not comparable, we haven't had snow for two years but the gritters are out quite a lot for the just in case on the main roads.

clumsyduck · 15/01/2018 20:47

Well yes and no . A trip to the supermarket or a friends I can put off . Dp stranded miles away ( potentially in the middle of nowhere due to his job ) because the motorway is shut would be fairly crap and I'm not sure my employers would be to happy if we all rang up unable to get to work with a "well you dont have the right to remain open today it's snowing " type approach nor would I be happy if it meant I was forced to take days annual leave for it .

Kursk · 15/01/2018 20:47

People are pathetic and need to learn how to drive in snowy conditions . Honestly for the amount of snow we get it's laughable how ott people get and declare themselves "snowed in"

Agree!

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