Metro Detroit road crews prepare for wintry mix
OAKLAND COUNTY, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - We can expect a mixed bag of weather on Tuesday that could cause a mess on the roads.
CBS News Detroit stopped by the Road Commission for Oakland County to see how they are preparing to make sure roads are safe, even with tricky winter weather ahead.
"Well, one of the big problems is we put salt down when there's snow, it'll melt the snow, but when the rain comes, it washes all the salt off the road," said Craig Bryson, Senior Communications Director for the Road Commission of Oakland County. "Then if we have a refreeze later in the day, there's no salt residue there, and we've got a salt all over again. And if it's a freezing rain mix, it gets washed off the road very easily. So that's a big challenge for us."
Bryson also added staff expects to work long hours to accommodate the changing road conditions.
"We're going to prepare for the worst and hope for the best," said Bryson. "So, we anticipate probably having to plow some starting from pre-dawn tomorrow through the middle of the day or so, plowing and then salting once we get the snow off the roads."
Bryson advised people to be careful on the roads as temperatures drop because it can develop quickly, and pedestrians and drivers may not see it.