Gritter named after BBC radio presenter

Mike Zeller said he was touched by the gesture

A BBC radio presenter said he was touched by a local authority's decision to name a gritter after him.

Cumberland Council named one of its gritters, which spreads salt on the roads in winter, after BBC Radio Cumbria's breakfast show presenter Mike Zeller.

Mike Zeller Ice Dispeller "does exactly what it says on the side of the gritter," joked Mike when the name was unveiled.

The name was chosen as part of a competition the council ran to get people to name five of its 20-strong fleet, with the name to remain in place for four years.

Mike said when he was contacted by the council he was "utterly flattered and taken aback".

"It was lovely, I am genuinely touched by it and, I have to say, my family are as well," he added.

He said it was due to the relationship his show had built "when it comes to getting the all-important winter safety messages out".

More than 100 submissions for the names were sent to Cumberland Council

The other winning names, unveiled on air, were Gritter Spitter, Control Salt Delete, Luke Grittler and La'al Salty.

More than 100 submissions were sent to Cumberland Council and Karl Melville, the council's assistant director of transport, and Denise Rollo, Labour councillor, helped choose the winners.

Mr Melville said people often took for granted that the streets would be safe to drive on and the competition was to recognise the hard work staff did.

"These amazing people we have on as our staff go out there day in, day out, regardless of the forecast and treat out network to make it safe for everybody else," he said.

Rollo said: "It's been absolutely amazing the amount of names we had coming in - there's been some really good names, so it was fairly tough choosing winners."