Francis Ramsay, whose story of being stranded in her home since Sunday because of ice in the cul de sac appeared in the Otago Daily Times yesterday, said she was "very, very pleased" it had been done, although surprised after the council insisted it could not afford to grit every street in Dunedin.
The partly disabled 77-year-old said she was able to drive to the supermarket for some supplies. It was "a bit nerve-wracking getting out", but she was all right once she was out of the cul de sac.
Another resident said her partner was finally able to get his van down the road. They had had to call on family all week to come to the edge of the thick ice, which they had to walk over, and pick them up. She was annoyed the street was not gritted until a story appeared in the paper.
Mrs Ramsay's story gained the attention of Cr Neil Collins, and at a finance, strategy and development meeting yesterday he asked whether the council "surely can do much better than that".
But Cr Lee Vandervis, deputy chairman of the infrastructure services committee, responded it was "asking for a really major event" to get a grit truck to areas like Lindsay Rd. He said he had seen grit trucks struggling to get up Stuart St.
"It's seriously not a simple task getting anywhere near some of these places."
