Top cop: All we could do was our best (From Basingstoke Gazette)

Top cop: All we could do was our best

11:10am Thursday 24th December 2009

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A COMBINATION of bad weather and rush-hour traffic caused complete gridlock on Basingstoke’s roads, a top cop has said.

Chief Superintendent Mark Chatterton, commander of North and East Hampshire operational command unit, said that at its peak, nearly 2,000 cars were stuck on Basingstoke’s ring road.

He said a combination of factors were to blame for the chaos.

He explained: “We still had a residue of ice on the roads and then there was a flurry of snow around Basingstoke which happened very quickly – a situation exacerbated by the rush-hour traffic.

“HGV drivers really struggled with the ice plus the snow on top and created a problem where cars could not go around. This caused a bottleneck which affected traffic further down the road.”

Hampshire Constabulary sent extra officers and vehicles to Basing-stoke overnight in a bid to help any stranded motorists.

Officers did welfare checks on motorists stuck in their cars, chaperoned gritting lorries to where they were needed and tried to help HGV lorries negotiate the slippery conditions.

Chief Supt Chatterton said: “It was not something that we could plan for. All we could do was respond and do the best that we could.”

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