Politics & Government

Advisory: Friday Morning Commute Could Be Another Icy One

City has been saving on salt, labor this season compared to last December.

Wauwatosa almost made it out of December with only a single round of road salting, but freezing rain Thursday morning added one more operation, and a third could come Friday morning depending on the vagaries of the weather.

The National Weather Service in Sullivan has issued a winter storm advisory warning of a low pressure zone moving across the plains that could bring light snow, rain or more ice starting after midnight.

Mike Kreiter, superintendent of operations for the , said that salt trucks were sent out early Thursday to deal with icy conditions but could only do so much.

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"This morning was rotten timing, just before and going into rush hour," Kreiter said. "Our trucks were out at 5:30, but unfortunately, whatever came down early froze – that was between 5:30 and 6:30."

Kreiter said there were a lot of traffic accidents caused by drivers unprepared for or inattentive to the slick conditions – and at least two accidents that involved his city salt trucks.

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"One hit a fire hydrant and the other was a parked car," Kreiter said. "Fortunately, they were property damage only."

Perhaps the drivers were out of practice. Before Thursday morning, the city had salted streets this season only on Dec. 17 after a light snowfall.

Last December, with unusually frequent precipitation, the city conducted six snow and ice operations that cost about $98,000 in time and materials – salt, truck fuel and labor including overtime. The average cost of each of those operations was more than $16,000.

In contrast, the salting this Dec. 17, with only a heavy dusting of snow, cost only $10,400, Kreiter said, and Thursday morning's salting probably was in the same neighborhood.

Depending on what comes Friday morning, and when it comes, the city may get off cheap because the salt already laid down Thursday should remain active.

"We can only prepare for what they predict," he said, "but we have to react to what comes. Certainly, it will be effective to have some brine on the roads."

Kreiter said that last winter overall had eight more snow and ice operations than an average year. By mid-March, Wauwatosa was nearly out of salt and Public Works had to ask for money to buy more.

The Weather Service forecast for Friday currently predicts light snow falling from midnight through the morning but cautions that flurries could be mixed with or give way to drizzling rain. With temperatures expected to be right around the freezing point, that could mean another coating of ice.

The advisory warns that Friday morning commuters should be prepared to allow extra travel time.


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