a YELLOW “be aware” warning of icy conditions has been issued for the Scottish Borders, writes Bob Burgess.
Both the police and the local council have urged drivers and pedestrians to be on their guard.
Inspector John Scott of Lothian and Borders Police described conditions in some parts of the Borders as treacherous.
And he stressed: “Do not assume roads are fine if they have been gritted. Even if they look black, there is still ice and potentially life-threatening conditions, so it is your responsibility to take the necessary precautions.
“All we can do is work with the council to warn people. This is a hard-hitting message that we hope people take seriously.”
The council’s head of infrastructure Rob Dickson added: “These are exceptional conditions and our gritting teams are working extremely hard to treat roads and footpaths.
“Many of our primary routes are having to be treated several times each day in order to reduce the risk of ice forming.”
But he warned: “Even after roads and footpaths have been treated, we are seeing many cases where ice still forms.
“We cannot emphasise enough the requirement to take extra care.”
The yellow alert from the Met Office covers from 4pm today until 9am tomorrow.