A TROWBRIDGE resident furious with the state of roads and pavements in the town wants to see Wiltshire Council to do more to maintain them.

Colin Silcocks fell off his bike on Thursday, December 29 and cracked several ribs, an accident he feels happened because the icy road surface on St Thomas Road near his home had not been gritted.

The 62-year-old, who lives in Bellefield Crescent, said the accident highlights a safety problem with highways in the town.

“The pavements have not been swept in a long time and all of the drains are blocked,” said the Great Western Railway engineer.

"In addition to that, the roads don’t seem to be gritted at all anymore, which is obviously very dangerous in this icy weather.

“This is supposed to be the county town but there’s no pride. Roads in other towns seem to be well maintained but here they’re awful.

“I had to go to the Minor Injuries Unit and I bet I’m not the only one who has needed medical treatment lately; pretty much all the pavements and roads are dangerous.”

Mr Silcocks had to take several days off work after the incident.

He also says the increasing number of people parking in housing estates near the town centre is causing an increasing problem.

He said: “The town council increased parking prices in the town centre thinking it would bring more money in but instead people just park in estates on the outskirts of town and walk in.

“This means there is less space for residents in the estates to park, which is a pain.”

Philip Whitehead, cabinet member for highways at Wiltshire Council, said: "We have a dedicated team which works late into the evenings every year to grit Wiltshire roads, sometimes in very difficult conditions.

“We salt all A and B roads and some C roads on our main gritting run – this equates to about 25% of the county's roads. We also have crews on standby on standby throughout the night if necessary.

“As ever, we always advise road users to take care when it’s icy, never assume a road has been salted and always travel according to the conditions. I would recommend people stick to treated roads, which can be found at www.wiltshire.gov.uk/gritting. ”