Oxfordshire County Council is inviting residents to help name its fleet of 30 new gritters, which joined the county’s winter service last year.
Every time temperatures drop below freezing, these vehicles take to the roads to spread salt and keep motorists safe – and now they’re in need of some memorable names.
The council is calling on the public to get creative and submit their suggestions through Let’s Talk Oxfordshire by 05 November. The winning names will then be chosen by the gritter drivers themselves, who will proudly display the selected titles on their vehicles.
Pupils from nearby primary schools in Deddington, Drayton near Abingdon, and Woodcote are also taking part, as are listeners of the Radio Oxford Breakfast Show.
Residents are encouraged to think of names with local significance or playful wordplay inspired by Oxfordshire’s culture, history, and famous figures. Examples include George Thaw-well, Lew-ice Carroll, JRR Saltbin, Dame Agatha Gritsie, Coolin’ Dexter, Inspector Norse, and even Sir Chill-ip Pullman.
The council also suggests tributes to notable locals such as King Alfred the Grit, Sir Winston Chur-chill, or Saint Slideswide. For music lovers, ideas like Radiospread or Whispering Bobsleigh Harris might appeal, while football fans could honour Oxford United legends such as Maur-ice Evans or Snowy Beauchamp.
Once the winning names are announced, residents will be able to track the gritters’ routes on cold winter nights via the council’s ‘gritter tracker’ system. The initiative aims to bring a bit of light-hearted fun to the winter months while recognising the vital role these vehicles and their drivers play in keeping the county’s roads safe.
Oxfordshire County Council and its highways maintenance partner, M Group, maintain an extensive winter operation with 54 trained gritter drivers and three covered storage depots holding more than 10,000 tonnes of road salt.
The fleet includes 15 26-tonne trucks, 12 18-tonne vehicles, two 7.5-tonne trucks, and one 3.5-tonne ‘baby gritter’ for narrow roads and park and rides.
Altogether, the fleet treats 27 routes covering over 3,500 kilometres of road during each gritting session – salting approximately 42 per cent of Oxfordshire’s road network, one of the highest rates in the UK.
