THE leader of Chester-le-Street District Council has criticised the county council for cutting its gritting budget.

Council leader Malcolm Pratt said Durham County Council had made what he describes as a 'retrograde step' in reducing the money spent on gritting.

He said district councillors in Chester-le-Street had been inundated with complaints from angry residents complaining about the lack of gritting on roads in the district.

Until this year the district council carried out gritting on behalf of the county council, but now the county has taken over responsibility.

He said: "It is a retrograde step and earlier this winter I protested to the county council but they had already made their decision.

"Residents should contact Durham County Council's Highways Action Line on (0191) 370 6000 if they are experiencing road-related problems, or they should bring it to the attention of county councillors."

In Durham, ambulance crews are threatening to close the Gilesgate ambulance station on safety grounds, unless road gritting is improved.

Ambulance drivers could not get in or out of the station on Saturday night and their vehicles slid out of control and sideways down the hill. On Monday they could only get in and out with difficulty.

Ray McDermott, secretary of the North-East Ambulance Service branch of Unison, said they were 'very concerned about staff safety.'

Mr McDermott, who is also a Chester-le-Street District councillor, represents nearly 900 ambulance workers.

Chester-le-Street's ambulance station behind Front Street, is not believed to be as badly affected as it is not on a slope.

Durham County Council decided last year to cut its winter maintenance fund for the whole county by £400,000.

In October, Derwentside District Council leader Coun Alex Watson led the calls of protest against the cutbacks, warning it could endanger lives.

A spokesman for Durham County Council said just because people see ice on the road, they should not assume it is due to reduced gritting.

He said: "Before the reduction in our winter maintenance budget, our pre-salting coverage of 50 per cent of the county's road network was among the highest level in the country and even at the reduced level of 39 per cent it still remains one of the highest in the region.

"People who look out and see roads with ice on them shouldn't assume that road has been one of the roads affected by the cut backs, 50 per cent wouldn't have been covered anyway last year."