CUMBRIA'S gritters have been out in force fighting against treacherous road conditions caused by heavy snowfall which has started to affect the south of the county.

A yellow warning remains in force from the Met Office for the North West and showers of sleet, snow and hail will continue through the rest of today (Thursday) and into Friday morning.

The county council’s fleet of 30 gritters have been working flat out for the last 36 hours in the worst affected areas.

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Cumbria police has received numerous reports of collisions and disruption caused by the snow, especially in the Carlisle area.

The M6 between Kendal and Penrith has been reduced to one lane in places.

The A66 at Stainmore has reopened others have remained closed.

These include the A689 Brampton to Alston, A686 Melmerby to Alston, A592 Patterdale to Windermere and A6 Shap to Kendal.

The council has warned drivers who ignore closure signs risk being stuck and hindering its efforts to clear the roads.

They may not be insured if they have an accident on a closed road.

Chief Inspector Matt Kennerley said: “We would ask all motorists to consider whether a journey is necessary in the current climate and would advise them not to travel.

"Those that must travel, need to alter their driving style to manage the challenging conditions.”

The council’s gritters will be continuing to treat roads throughout the day and night while the snowy conditions continue.

In a full gritting run the council uses 300 tonnes of salt and the gritters travel a distance equal to driving from Penrith to Barcelona. The council can do this up to three times every 24 hours.

Cllr Keith Little, Cumbria County Council’s Cabinet member responsible for highways, said: “These have been the harshest conditions so far this winter and it is an extremely busy time for all our gritting crews.

"They are out there treating the roads at full capacity, but some disruption and delay is inevitable given the conditions. People need to be sensible and think carefully about alternative arrangements.”