Why is prevention now not better than cure?

I have little people and have to take them uphill and downdale to nursery, now I am not old but what is going on with the state of the winter roads. I remember when you could get about even if it had snowed. On Friday I barely got to nursery due to the fact that it was below freezing. I know there has been a lot of rain everywhere and therefore the roads are wet and this then turns to ice. Due to the lack of funds our local Council is unable to grit any minor roads, so it follows surely that they should make sure that all gutters and drains are clear to carry all this extra water off the roads in to the streams rather than have it running down the road to turn to ice.

I know the country is in trouble and Councils have to save money somewhere but how many deaths are we going to see over the winter because of road accidents due to the ice?

We need to bring back lengths men (or should I say people!) to look after the roads, ditches, gutters and drains. I would enjoy an outside physical job but apparently if you can't sit on a digger and do it, no-one wants to do the work. Perhaps we could get offenders to do it as part of community service, now that would be some good payback.

The Council re-tarmaced a small section of our very rural road this year and in the recent downpours I watched the water spewing out of the ditch over the new tarmac because it couldn't head down the blocked drain. So precisely the reason the road needed new tarmac. Why is prevention now not better than cure?