Thanks Michael - think i may let the train take the strain - then pop into sainsburys to get mums food - you may well have seen me on certain saturdays carrying many many bags of shopping down Taymount Rise - then cut through the garden to The Park

As long as i am home by 12.45 to watch Chelsea paly at Hull, then it can snow as much as it wants

Taymount was still a proper mess last night when I passed. But the area has warmed up a bit today, so a lot of side roads clearning. Wear spikes, the pavements are shocking!

Just getting a bit of snow again at the moment, but in the words of the Met Office, it should not amount to much lol

Cheers Snazy

Mind your step

I am...
Walking like my ankles are tied together haha.
Maybe Lewisham can dump piles of grip every couple of hundred yards so people can do their own gritting.

maybe an idea - last night i thought i was the new Poirot and walking like a penquin

I was on the phone to Lewisham council today about a non-snow/ice related matter (shocking, I know).

But I mentioned the ice and slush around Forest Hill station (I tripped on the stairs in the underpass this morning. More embassased than hurt - but two very nice men helped me up).

Anyway, I mentioned the fall, and I was told that Lewisham's latest delivery of salt had been stolen, and the council was awaiting a new delivery.

What next, armed guards to protect our salt and grit? Hrummmp!

Maybe that's why Canonbie and Netherby roads haven't been gritted since before the weekend then. I thought it was down to 'rationing'.

But a word of warning, don't even think of trying to drive on either of these two roads - I couldn't even cross Canonbie across to Netherby on foot this morning - had to go down the road to find a 'passing place' that wasn't sheet ice. Seeing several cars - including Land Rovers - sliding 20-30 meters down the hill is fascinating in a macabre kind of way - but I don't want to see anyone hurt

Actually Canonbie yesterday morning (Monday) the part from Forest Hill Road to Westwood Park was like an ice rink. Cars had no grip and slid down round the bend or on the way up getting close to the corner with wheels spinning madly and sliding back down.

Unfortunately drivers don't realise the danger and as a result either slide into vehicles abandoned by their owners/residents or crash into householders front walls as has already happened.

Scariest was seeing a people carrier that ended up sideways in front of Burwood Court.

I understand the otherside of Canonbie was closed to traffic.

I think you're right that eventually late Monday night they closed the other side of Canonbie, but that led to people coming up from Netherby or Westwood Park, going as far as they could up the hill, then sliding down.

People don't realise how bad it is, especially as until the weekend, the gritters had been out once or twice a night, so apart from just after snowfall, the roads on the hill have been pretty passable. Its the inconsistency in service that's the biggest problem. I've tried calling the council and all I get is that they will 'pass on the message to highways, but they are very busy at the moment' - grr.

It's a shame that our local councillors only get off their rear ends and make contact with voters at election time, but when WE need them to represent us and put pressure on the highways department to include gritting these roads that become severely dangerous during such intense periods of weather, we don't see hide nor heal of them.

That's aimed squarely at the Labour, Conservative and Lib Dems councillors, somehow I can't see you responding to this. When election day comes, you'll get reminded why people won't be voting for you!!!!!!

I'm not sure whether any councillors could have done anything to be honest- there just wasnt enough grit to go around nationally. I speak from one of the few roads around here that wasnt gritted whilst others nearby were- everyone in my road was snowed in for several days whilst life seems to have gone on as normal elsewhere. Having said that we do have some of the steepest hills in London so its worth making the point now for the future. Personally I think winter tyres may be the way to go...

I did get an email from one of our local councillors who lives on Canonbie, so he is well aware of the difficulties people are facing, and is clearly limited in what he can do to solve the problem.

With the latest snowfall, and little grit left, I think conditions on roads and pavements are going to be difficult today.

I had thought that the hills were given slightly higher priority than other minor roads, but this does not appear to be the case this year.

There I was yesterday evening, coming home to see that the gritters had finally been out on Canonbie, and thinking perhaps tomorrow the car might move, when what happens this morning? Another 4 inches of the white stuff.

Where did that come from?? Bored of this now. . .

Despite all the problems on many roads and pavements in forest hill I was in East Dulwich today and noticed the pavements were being gritted by two workers and the same in Camberwell. Is this due to a difference in borough??

That could be a possibility seeing as ED and Camberwell are in Southwark, while FH is in Lewisham. The borough boundary is on Wood Vale/Sydenham Hill.

I would have to say that people need to use a little common sense - if they are still using roads like Canonbie and Westwood Park as short cuts in this sort of weather they need their heads examined.

On another point - my husband decided to drive up Sunderland Road at seven a.m. this morning. Not a major hill by Forest Hill standards, but there was lots of fresh snow and we have a rear-wheel drive car. Needless to say, we got stuck quite quickly. Entirely our own fault. As we were debating who would push and who would steer, a man came out of the house beside us. Hurrah, I thought, neighbourly help. Er, no. He got into his own car and drove off (down the hill, obviously). What a gent.

I've been busy the past week clearing my drive and the area outside my house. Armed only with a small spade and a few kilos of table salt I have kept the pavement outside my house clear of ice. It's not difficult. It is an urban myth that you will be sued if you clear the snow and someone subsequently slips (I heard in on Radio 4 so it must be true). I understand that the council have to prioritise roads over pavements.

Having said that, they don't seem to have gritted any pavements at all, whereas main pavements in East Dulwich have been done. The pavements around the back of Forest Hill station weren't gritted last Feb either, so they can't blame stolen grit. And how exactly do you steal a consignment of road salt? And why?

Perhaps Southwark 'borrowed' Lewisham's supply to grit their pavements

If I rushed out of my house to help everybody stuck on Taymount Rise I would be very cold and tired by now. If you drive up a hill in these conditions you should expect to get stuck and need to reverse back down. I really don't think you should expect people who live on hills to push your car at 7am, we have enough trouble getting around as it is!

Let's stick to blaming the council if we must blame someone, rather than blaming our neighbours for not pushing our cars or clearing their road for use as rat runs.

(Sorry, one rant deserves another)

Fair enough, it was our own fault that we got stuck, except that it's not a hill that normally causes any problems so I don't expect it's been a common occurrence. We only needed a teeny tiny push. I don't think I could personally walk right by someone that needed help without so much as a glance. I might hide in my house, but to just walk by ... but like I said, I take your point.

Oh, and just to clarify, I didn't expect the guy to push the car up the hill for me! We were stuck in snow, not on ice, and couldn't move anywhere, up, down, where ever. Reversing back down wasn't an option. We just needed pushed back out onto the road. Of course I don't expect all residents on hills to come out and re-enact Britain's Strongest Man and push all these cars up and over the hill. That would be unreasonable.