Why many Richmond roads are still icy
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A snow plow rolling through Henrico on Tuesday. Image: Courtesy Henrico Public Works
Transportation officials are asking Richmonders for their patience as they continue clearing streets after the weekend's winter storm.
Why it matters: Everyone's a little stir crazy, but many neighborhood roads are still in bad shape, and black ice remains a concern.
State of play: Road crews have been working round-the-clock, most in 12-hour shifts, since the winter storm roiled the region Saturday and Sunday.
- But sustained below-freezing temperatures have made clearing the streets more challenging than the typical snowfall Richmond gets, says Henrico Public Works.
- Usually crews can clear a road once and be done with it, but with the layer of ice covering most local roads, it can take multiple passes and multiple days to get through to pavement, they said.
- Plus, the salt that crews usually use to treat the roads doesn't work when the temperature is below 25 degrees, as it has been for much of the day, every day, since the weekend.
Zoom in: Crews are prioritizing main and well-traveled secondary roads first, according to Henrico, Richmond and the Virginia Department of Transportation.
- If 2 inches of snow has accumulated on neighborhood roads, VDOT will create an 8-to-10-foot-wide snow-packed and sanded lane of travel, but likely won't get down to the pavement.
- The fewer cars they have to work around, the faster they can work. In short: Officials want people off the roads.
Be smart: Who plows your road in Richmond depends on where you live.
- VDOT is responsible for interstates and all public roads in Chesterfield and Hanover, per WTVR.
- Developers and subdivisions may maintain neighborhood roads in those counties.
- VDOT also plows U.S. Highways (like Broad and Patterson) in Henrico, but Henrico Public Works is in charge of the rest of its roads.
- In the city, Richmond Public Works does all the streets, including Broad. Sidewalks are the responsibility of the property or business owner they front.
Fun fact: VDOT has a live plow tracker if you want the latest on where its plows have been.
- You can find the city's priority road list on its website, and Henrico DPW is periodically posting its routes on its social media pages.
What we're watching: The forecast for round two of this winter weather nightmare (we'll have more on that Thursday).