One down, two to go; Pikes Peak-area road crews prepare for snowy weather week
MONUMENT, Colo. (KRDO) -- The season's first significant snowfall in the Pikes Peak region had no noticeable impacts to traffic early Monday morning on two major corridors near Monument Hill.
Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) tanker trucks frequently sprayed liquid salt on the pavement of I-25, and there appeared to be no ice or slush accumulating there to slow traffic.
Some snow, however, accumulated on nearby Highway 105 and presented the possibility of some slick driving areas there and on side streets.
CDOT and El Paso County often pre-treat highways with salt brine as another strategy to prevent ice accumulation, but they didn't do so for this storm because weekend rain would have washed away the brine.
Another factor is the ground is still relatively warm and that promotes melting, too.
At an elevation of 7,300 feet, a winter storm can be much more intense than at lower elevations; but that didn't appear to be the case through the mid-morning hours and snow was expected to end by late morning, ahead of another two more storms forecasted for later this week.
Tim Stickel, El Paso County's highway manager, said that his crews are preparing for the problem of flash-freezing -- something they experienced Monday in Black Forest.
"It didn't last long but it came over us pretty quick," he recalled. "It was only in spotty areas around the Black Forest Road/Hodgen Road intersection. We had two plow trucks slide into ditches because of it. When we run into it, we'll try to slow down our operations. We'll place salt and sand on hills, curbs, bridges and intersections to help insure safe travels for the motoring public."
Stickel said that he's treating all three storms this week as a single storm.
"Each one has a tail that ties into the next wave," he explained. "We'll be ready, just as we always are. We'll do some pre-treating in the Black Forest/Monument Hill area.
Worker shortages continue to affect the county; Stickel said that 30 crews were working for Monday's storm -- down from a normal call-out of 42.
Authorities ask drivers to slow down, leave plenty of space between vehicles ahead of you and watch for black ice because it can appear anywhere and without warning.
