As the days flip off the calendar, overnight low temperatures are starting to drift lower and lower and the chance of precipitation falling as snow, freezing rain, ice or a mixture is on the increase.
PennDOT says it’s ready for the impending winter weather.
However, as of today, the northern Blair County area has yet to see a significant winter-like storm event this fall. Overnight lows Sunday into this morning dropped to the mid 30s and highs today were only predicted in the mid 40s as a cold front moved into the region. Some forecasts called for flurries today and Tuesday.
The good news is no significant precipitation events are predicted for the next few days. However, low temperatures are expected to range from the mid 20s to about 32 degrees for at least the next two weeks. So, any precipitation at night and into the morning hours could fall in numerous forms including flurries, a rain/snow mixture as well as ice and snow. Locations with higher elevations are more susceptible when precipitation is in the forecast.
Some forecasts predict a rain to snow event next Tuesday into Wednesday with a rain to ice event later next week on Thursday into Friday. Additional snow is in the forecast at the beginning of Thanksgiving week.
PennDOT said in a release last week, it has a budget of more than $194 million and almost 500,000 tons of salt stockpiled across the Commonwealth.
“The one thing that’s certain about Pennsylvania’s winters is that nothing is for certain, that’s why PennDOT prepares for the worst that Mother Nature can dish up,” said State Transportation Secretary Allen D. Biehler, P.E. “Pennsylvanians can rest assured that when the first snow storm does strike, our crews and equipment will be ready.”
According to information provided in its press release, PennDOT said it has more than 2,300 plow trucks, 520 front-end loaders and 22 snow blowers. The Department also expects to use 322 rental trucks this winter. The agency said that due to its investment in larger and more powerful trucks, it will be using 34 fewer department trucks and 114 fewer rental trucks this winter.
PennDOT said it plans to save almost $4 million by using fewer department trucks and about $1.7 million by reducing the number of rental units.
“PennDOT and municipal snowplow operators will be working hard this winter in all types of weather conditions,” said Biehler. “I urge all motorists to be patient, respect other motorists and give us and our municipal partners the chance to do our jobs.”
PennDOT also is reminding motorists it provides its highest level of service on interstate systems and primary routes. The agency noted higher accumulations of snow on secondary roads is not uncommon since road crews are focused on clearing and maintaining major routes. PennDOT plans to use a higher ratio of anti-skid material in many situations on secondary roads to provide traction. The agency explained salt requires a certain amount of traction to work effectively.
PennDOT is also planning to use technologies such as anti-icing to better manage available salt supplies. Anti-icing involves treating road surfaces with a salt-water solution before freezing precipitation starts to fall. PennDOT said the procedure prevents ice and snow from forming a strong bond with the road surface.
Last winter PennDOT used 937,000 tons of salt and 775,000 tons of anti-skid material to treat roads in the state.
