Monday November 9th 2026
Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Liam Eunson
BEAR Scotland is gearing up for another busy winter in the South East, with 58 winter vehicles and more than 25,000 tonnes of salt ready to help keep the region’s trunk road users moving through the colder months.
Responsible for managing and maintaining over 505km of trunk roads across the South East of Scotland, BEAR Scotland, working on behalf of Transport Scotland, has completed its winter preparations, with more than 90 skilled operatives ready to respond to freezing temperatures and adverse weather.
The fleet includes 21 large, 32-tonne eight-wheeler salt spreaders – some of the largest in the UK – alongside 13 dedicated winter patrol vehicles, 12 reserve winter vehicles and seven footway spreaders. Four snow blower attachments are also available, each capable of shifting at least 600 tonnes of snow per hour.
This winter will also see newly named gritters take to the roads, with ‘Snowlene’ and ‘Gritter Sweet Symphony’ among the fleet.
Behind the scenes, BEAR Scotland’s 24/7 network hub will monitor weather forecasts and road conditions, supported by overnight winter patrols gathering real-time road surface temperature data and carrying out treatments where required.
Using detailed forecasts from Metdesk, teams will apply pre-wetted salt ahead of freezing temperatures to help prevent ice forming and keep key routes safer for road users.
The South East’s four major bridges – the Queensferry Crossing, Forth Road Bridge, Clackmannanshire Bridge and Kincardine Bridge – will receive dedicated treatment using potassium acetate liquid de-icer to prevent corrosion of steelwork.
Jamie Finlayson, BEAR Scotland’s South East Contract Director, said: “Across the South East Unit, we have equipment and teams in place to respond not only to snow and ice, but to flooding and high winds too.
“We encourage motorists to play their part by checking weather forecasts and road conditions before travelling, ensuring their vehicles are winter-ready and allowing extra time for journeys when conditions are challenging.”
See BEAR’s gritters and where they’ve been using the Traffic Scotland Gritter Tracker.
Updates on BEAR’s winter service are posted on X at @SETrunkRoads.
Find out more on BEAR Scotland’s winter portal: www.bearscot.com/winter-portal
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