The Missouri Department of Transportation said crews will begin working around the clock starting Monday at 7 p.m., but they will not be pre-treating roads ahead of the winter storm.
MoDOT District Maintenance Engineer Bob Becker said crews are hoping the cold temperatures and dryer snow will be advantageous for clearing the roads.
“We look at every storm differently, and the main thing with this one is the extreme temperatures,” Becker said in a Monday afternoon press conference. “So that pavement is going to be cold already, and it’s a light, fluffier snow. And if we put a chemical down and snow hits the roadway, it’ll melt and it’ll dilute it right away and it’ll turn to ice right away.”
Becker said they will eventually treat the roads after a certain buildup on the roads, but they don’t want to cause a problem early on in the storm.
IDOT said they also won’t be pre-treating the roads because they already have enough chemicals down from treating the Illinois roads on Sunday.
District 8 engineer Joe Monroe said IDOT expects their forecast to change a couple of times before and during snowfall tomorrow. Monroe said it seems like the southern part of their district will be hit the hardest.
“We pride ourselves on being aggressive. We pride ourselves on trying to clean up as quickly as possible, but you know we have to be pragmatic. We don’t want to make the situation worse out of pride. So those are the things that concern us. But I think if the trend continues, yes, we’re confident we can manage the storm reasonably well,” Monroe said.
Becker’s primary concern coming into this winter was a lack of experience for his plow crews. He said the first major storm of the season provided that experience for many of the drivers. He said they will be focusing on highway ramps to avoid some of the issues from the January storm.
“We’ll do better at making sure we’re hitting those ramps every now and then to get those open so we don’t have those problems we had last time around,” Becker said.
MoDOT and IDOT both said the snow could affect both commutes on Tuesday.
Crews will work 12-hour shifts until the storm has passed.
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Matthew Beitscher, the lead meteorologist at National Weather Service St. Louis, said they were adjusting to project lower levels of accumulation for most of the St. Louis area. He said the current forecast calls for between 2 and 5 inches of snow in St. Louis, with higher totals to the south. He said the change is due to the storm tracking further south in recent models.
He said the snow will start Monday night and continue until early Wednesday morning, affecting both commutes on Tuesday.
Dangerous cold will continue in the St. Louis area during and after the storm, with lows struggling to get out of the single digits until Friday or Saturday.
Missouri State Highway Patrol Sergeant Andy Gadberry said the best thing people can do now is make arrangements to stay off the road or make sure your car is ready for the road.
He advised drivers to have a full tank of gas, properly inflated tires, and functioning windshield wipers. He also said drivers should keep some food and water, an extra blanket, and a phone charger in their car in case they get stranded.
He said if you do get into a wreck, remain in your vehicle and make sure to call for help.
“If you slide off or get into a minor, non-injury accident, you can contact *55, that’ll get a trooper out there to help you out,” Gadberry said. “If it is an injury accident, obviously you can call 911.”
MODOT said there are many work zones around the St. Louis area, so people should be aware that those will be some of the most challenging areas to drive around.
This article was originally published here.