PennDOT Crews Battle First Snow Event Of Season
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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – Snow started to move into western Pennsylvania early Tuesday morning and PennDOT is using this event as its first big test of the season.
According to KDKA-TV Meteorologist Ron Smiley, this is the first of three potential clipper lows to impact the area through Friday. It is expected to bring around an inch of snow to Pittsburgh.
Places from Butler to Beaver counties could see closer to 2 inches of snow with isolated higher totals north of Interstate 80 due to lake effect snow through the day on Tuesday.
Slushy driving conditions can be expected through 11 a.m., but we're not out of the woods just yet. Lake effect snow is expected to impact areas along Interstate 80 and north starting this afternoon.
On Wednesday, we could see another 2-3 inches of snow.
Throughout the early morning hours, a mixture of rain and snow fell in Cranberry Township.
Hours later as KDKA-TV's Brenda Waters traveled through Evans City into Connoquenessing Township, the weather changed in an instant. Snow began to fall and the roads were covered and slick as she crossed into to Butler.
PennDOT's Rod Toy of District 10 in Butler said that has been the trend.
"It's kind of the way it's been happening. All morning long we have a squall, and then it stops, we get it clear and it starts again. Temps are starting to fall now getting at freezing conditions, roads are refreezing," Toy said.
PennDOT's Butler district had 42 trucks on main and side roads.
"We've got all the crews out on the roads and spreading them when needed," Toy said.
Crews in Butler were on the road at 3 a.m. and are scheduled to work two shifts, covering 24-hour periods until the snowstorm rolls out.
Just in time for the snow, both PennDOT and the City of Pittsburgh's snow plow tracker websites are up and running.
The sites show which roads have been plowed and where the plow trucks are at any given time.
"We have AVL, automated vehicle locaters, in all of our plows for the very first time. So, you'll be able to see the latest plow route, when they were there, and so that you can plan accordingly," PennDOT Secretary Leslie Richards said.
Snow Plow Trackers:
PennDOT Plow Tracker
Pittsburgh Plow Tracker
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