Old Man Winter may have been slow to arrive, but now that he’s here, he’s here with a vengeance.
Winter Storm Fern dumped nearly a foot of snow on north central Ohio last weekend, and she continues to grace us with single digit temperatures and blistering winds for good measure.
Every year around this time, someone asks us a variation of the same question: “Why haven’t local crews made it to this particular road?”
Before you try to warm yourself with your own rage as you watch a snow plow truck drive by with its blades up or (heaven forbid) a lack of salt bouncing out the back — here’s what you need to know.
Each municipality is responsible for its own roads
If you see a truck driving by that doesn’t appear to be doing anything, they may just be passing through.
When I went on a ride-along with a county snow plow driver earlier this week, we left the county garage in downtown Mansfield and drove through Ontario. But the driver’s route didn’t start until we left Ontario City limits.
County driver Tom Harvey explained that each municipality has its own roads and aren’t going to use limited resources on roads for which another government entity is responsible.
Tax dollars pay for the maintenance of public roads. Each village, city, township and county is responsible for its own. The Ohio Department of Transportation is responsible for all interstate highways as well as portions of state and U.S. Routes that are outside village and city limits.
As ODOT points out, plowing after salt has been dropped just pushes salt off the roads. So if (for example) a county plows as he passes through a city to get to his route, he might be undoing the work of a different local crew.
As temperatures drop, salt becomes less effective
Rock salt becomes less effective at melting ice and snow temperatures drop to 15 to 20 degrees Fahrenheit, according to Cargill, a road salt vendor and mining operator.
Some crews mix in additives like beet juice or brine, which helps the salt work more efficiently, but effectiveness still drops with the mercury in your thermometer.
Still, temperature isn’t the only factor local roads consider when choosing their salt strategy.
Jon Dickinson, supervisor of the Richland County Highway Department, said municipalities may be working with a limited amount of material and trying to stretch it as far as possible.
“I don’t know that there’s really a shortage, it’s just really hard to get,” Dickinson said. “It’s such a high demand right now and (suppliers) having trouble keeping up.”
“It’s been probably four, five, six years since we’ve had a winter this bad, where we’ve required this much salt,” he added.
Not to mention the fact that if snow is coming down fast, salt can be buried in a fresh blanket of flakes before it has time to really work.
During the brunt of Winter Storm Fern, Dickinson told me his drivers were reserving salt for intersections, hills and curves.
“We don’t have the budget to run salt the whole time during a storm like this,” Dickinson told me on Sunday.
But why haven’t crews gotten to my road?
Dear reader, I feel your pain. I live on a side street and sometimes it takes a few days for plows to pass by my driveway. During lesser storms, they’ve bypassed it all together.
The unfortunate truth is, when resources are limited or storms are massive, certain streets take priority.
If you think that’s unfair, imagine cruising down the big hill on Hanley Road near Ohio 13 without any plows or salt.
I’ll stick to sledding the old fashioned way.
In all seriousness, if you think your road should have been addressed by now, I’d recommend reaching out to your city, village, township or the county directly.
If you live in an apartment complex, you may need to contact your landlord or property manager. Private driveways are the owner’s responsibility.
