Britain has an Achilles heel and we need to talk about it (Image: Getty)
Well, at least the got it right. Having prophesied that an Arctic blast would hit Britain, the weather duly obliged. Yet what could have also been foreseen was Britain’s inability to cope with the first of the season.
So along with all those pretty pictures on social media of powdery back gardens (“it`s snowing!!”) the crippling impact was immediately evident. Drivers stuck, trains cancelled and schools — never slow when it comes to potential closure — duly shut their doors.
And given the has extended three yellow for snow and ice until tomorrow, you can be sure more disruption is on its way.
The question is why is this country a joke when it comes to bad weather?
As one Norwegian colleague, now living here and who has routinely experienced -25C in her home country with minimal disruption, put it: “It`s just lame.”
She’s right. Lame because of a perfect storm (sorry) of lack of preparedness, poor infrastructure and old fashioned knee-jerk panic. What’s more, it happens every time the UK experiences what might be defined as “extreme weather” (though tell that to the Eskimos).
The fact that an arctic blast — one so heavily predicted — can cause such extensive disruption proves one thing. We clearly are a bunch of snowflakes.
There is simply no excuse for thousands of pupils across and central to be given the day off because of snow. Even if it fell to — oooh — five inches. Unless pipes burst or heating fails, why isn’t every sinew strained to ensure children are in the classroom? Bad enough the post -generation has also suffered its fair share of teachers’ strikes. But why is snow in the mix? Do children in colder countries stay home from October to March?
As for roads, rail and runways, it’s simply ludicrous that snow (sometimes referred to as the wrong sort of snow) can jam the system.
Of course, it could be argued that the UK’s transport infrastructure was designed with a mild, temperate climate in mind. But using this as mitigation is for the birds. Britain has a wealthy . If we are going to engender further growth and a spirit of entrepreneurialism and wealth creation, we need to get from A to B. Market forces demand we have a transport system which can deal with the unpredictable. Otherwise what is the point of the weather forecast?
The problems are multifactorial. Much of the network, particularly the railways, is old and needs maintenance or modernisation. Rail points and switches often freeze because they lack heaters or insulation designed for heavy snow.
Equally airports should surely have extensive de-icing equipment for planes and runways. As for gritters, is it not incumbent on every local authority to have enough to ensure main arterial routes (and many minor ones) are open.
The irony is this is all happening against the relentelly noisy debate about climate change. So if, as some suggest, more extreme weather is going to become routine then vital changes are introduced to meet this head on — not least updating roads and bridges, and to deal with unexpected temperatures.
However infrequent such bouts of extreme weather — be it snow, heat or rainfall — we cannot continue without contingency plans. From better insulating buildings to ensuring roads are salted and gritted before a freeze takes hold. As for the cost, surely keeping trains running and people in work will ensure a return on the investment. This is about being prepared and taking preemptive action.
There is, though, one other important aspect which has to be addressed — and that’s attitude. We have to shake off the presumption that nothing will work and just lie down and accept it to be so. It is this kind of self-fulfilling prophecy which also stymies our ability to function during bad weather. We need to ensure our cars are fit for winter, walk our children to school if the buses don’t run and refuse to be cowed by what the weather might throw at us.
For too long Britain has been closed for business because of a bit of snow. The long term forecast will certainly look bleak if we continue to operate this way.