TAKE care on the roads this festive season warns the Highways Agency.
Take food and drink on longer journeys.
Keep a spade and some warm clothing in your vehicles.
Ensure vehicles are properly serviced, that the cooling sysem contains the correct amount of anti-freeze and that you have a de-icer available.
If wintry conditions do set in, only make necessary journeys.
Highways Agency winter maintenance manager Alan Mason said: "Our top priority is to keep the roads safe and open, but if your vehicle does break down in snow, park it off the main carriageway with enough room so that a snow plough can get past.
"If you have a mobile phone, call the police control centre and tell them what's happened and where you are.
"Don't leave your vehicle unless you are certain that you can reach safety without becoming lost or cold."
There is 20,000 tonnes of salt in depots across the region ready for use by a fleet of gritters, snow ploughs and snow blowers, and electronic sensors are monitoring roads for icy conditions.
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