Think back to before 2020 and the pandemic – a time that now seems so distant. Everyone drove or took a train to work. But because of Covid-19, people could only walk or cycle to remain active in lockdown. And that trend continues.

In the last 20 years, walking and cycling accounted for around 40% of all travel in towns and cities yet in 2020, active travel soared to 48%. The Government is investing more too: in September, it pledged £60m to encourage children to walk or cycle to school. And in May, it invested £200m to improve walking and cycling routes.  

As winter arrives, how do we keep our roads and paths safe from snow and frost? To make roads and paths safe, you would expect your winter service team to come up with the answers. But you have a key role to play too and that’s where Peacock Salt can help with the right equipment and de-icing material. 

On surfaces which have infrequent or little traffic, like cycleways, de-icing liquids can be more effective than dry salt on its own. Liquid de-icers start to work immediately upon impact, without the need for additional moisture or agitation. 

Evaluating cost, quality and environmental demands is a good place to start when choosing a de-icer. Sodium Chloride Brine is low cost and effective, produced by saturating water with de-icing salt; you can produce your own on-site with one of our salt saturators or can we deliver brine in a 1,000L IBC tank or tanker? 

Depending on the infrastructure surrounding the footway or cycleway, we also have a low-corrosive liquid called Pro-Brine which is effective down to -7°C. We can scale up further by supplying Magnesium Chloride (down to -18°C) and Calcium Chloride (down to -32°C) right up to Viaform – an extremely low corrosion, aircraft grade de-icer for extreme temperatures (down to -50°C) and with relatively low chemical oxygen demand. This is more suitable for use near marine life and metal structures. 

Where a granular de-icer is preferred, we have a wide range of de-icers from standard rock salt through to granular low and non-corrosive de-icers. As the UK’s largest distributor of salt products, we deliver across the UK mainland free of charge.

De-icers and salt are only part of the equation in making roads and paths safer. It’s important to invest in equipment designed for the rigours of the winter months that can handle de-icing liquid. 

The Hilltip Spraystriker uses a simple control system to administer de-icing liquids at an accurate ml/m2 reading. This is perfect for teams using brine for the first time. The treatment data can be recorded on a web portal called ‘HTrack’ that lets your employees programme in application rates online and then reports each day on a map output. 

The Hilltip Snowstriker snow plough attachment allows for a more nimble approach to snow clearance than larger gritting vehicles as Hilltip units are compatible with all European specification vehicles including ATV’s Compact Tractors and pickup trucks.

Peacock Salt is the UK importer of Hilltip. Based in Finland, Hilltip is Europe’s number one manufacturer of winter equipment for light vehicles. There are now over 900 Hilltip units sold in the UK, fully backed up by over 20 service facilities and excellent driver training resources.

Peacock Salt is the ideal partner to help local authorities and businesses adapt their operations to keep active travel safe during the winter months, even with the number of people walking and cycling higher than ever before. Visit our website or contact a member of our team who will be happy to discuss your requirements.