Why can't Britain deal with snow?

We all knew it was coming, so why couldn't we handle it?

If you live in the UK, you would have experienced (or at least heard about) the recent snowfall that has left many areas with up to 8 inches of snow. Warnings were issued, roads were gritted and shoppers panic-bought, with a Tesco store in Aberdare, South Wales selling out of bread and milk the night before. But despite all of the preparations and heads-up that the snow was coming, when it actually came the country came to a virtual stand-still. But why? Why after all these years of getting snow during the winter can Britain not seem to cope with it?

Bread, milk, fruit and fresh meat all sold out in stores across South Wales

(Image source - ITV)

Services

In the days before the snowfall gritters across the country were out in force, making sure all of the main roads were clear. But it seems that’s where they stopped; the main roads. It’s understandable that main roads are made a priority and that budgets mean smaller roads can’t be gritted as much, but in many cases there is no attempt to do anything about these smaller roads and the side-streets. It’s all well and good to make sure the major roads are cleared for traffic, but if the traffic can’t get from the smaller roads to the main ones then what’s the point?

Instead of cancelling trains in advance, why can't providers do something about snow-covered tracks?

(Image source - Metro)

Another service that is also often affected by the snow is transport. As with cars, if roads aren’t safe for buses to drive along then they can’t run. But trains run on tracks, which are never as badly affected by snow as roads. Yet last week, as the snow hit, many services were either delayed severely or cancelled completely. In some cases, trains were cancelled before the snow had actually hit. Rather than preparing for the snow by cancelling trains, why couldn’t providers actually do something to allow their trains to run in the snow?  


Attitude

Whilst a lot of people hate the way snow disrupts normal-day life, many others embrace it, as it gives them the ‘snow day’. The day where it is ‘impossible’ to get to work so you’ll just have to stay at home. For many people that is true because, as mentioned earlier, a lack of gritting on side-streets means many people can’t safely get to work. And with retail workers, if people can’t get to the store to shop then there’s no reason for the store to open. But in many cases, people can get to work. People with access to main roads can easily drive to their offices and places of work. Those who use public transport can get a train and get to work. And those who walk can, well, walk.

Snow doesn't stop everyone from getting to work, so why do so many take the day off?

(Image source - BBC News)

There is a general feeling across the country that when it snows we can’t do anything. But we can, if we just made the effort, and if transport providers made the effort too.


Media

As has already been said, the newspapers have been talking about the incoming snow for weeks. During the past few days, the reports on the weather during news programmes have featured several stories about the snow and residents trying to deal with it, all of which can be simplified to ‘There’s snow’. There seems to be a media frenzy when it comes to the snow. News outlets all seem to be telling us how bad the snow is and how devastating it has been, leading to public panic and the view that they can’t do anything because of the snow.

Should a bit of snow really be making the front pages?

(Image source - Daily Express)

There are many developed countries across the world who are capable of functioning despite heavy snowfall on a regular basis. Surely Britain can find a way to cope for the handful of days every year it snows, especially when everyone knows about it weeks in advance.