OKC Drivers Still Dealing With Icy Neighborhood Streets

Road crews were out again on Tuesday for the sixth straight day of snow and ice removal.

The focus has been on the city's 1,100 miles of snow routes, leaving neighborhood streets in many areas covered in ice because the plow and salt-spreading trucks have not treated these areas.

"These streets, especially the ones that go down, it seems like they're a little bit more slick," said Edgemere Park resident Shelly Yeich.

Yeich slipped from time to time as she walked through her neighborhood walking her dog, Lilly. Even just trying to get home was more difficult because of the icy side streets.

"Trying to get up and down hills. You can even stop without sliding," explained Al Davis, who lives in Oklahoma City. "It took me a couple of minutes just to get in the driveway."

There is good reason why many of the secondary roadways do not get treated in Oklahoma City. The city has more than 8,000 miles of roads to clear and only 33 trucks.

"We can't possibly get to every single street," explained Shannon Cox, Public Information Office for OKC Public Works. "Oklahoma City is 620 square miles."

They focus on the 1,100 miles of snow routes, which OKC designates in partnership with surrounding municipalities. They work together to make sure commuters can get to and from work safely on these major roads.

The crews clear enough road to stretch from OKC to Las Vegas. Even if Oklahoma City plows could get to every street, there are other obstacles.

"They're tighter. They're harder to get a snow plow through and if you have cars parked and all those other obstacles in the way, it makes it very difficult for us to get through. Even if we could do them all," Cox said.

Cox said it would not make sense for the city to purchase more equipment for only a few storms a year. The plows and salt-spreaders are very expensive, running upwards of $135,000 each. The salt alone for this winter cost Oklahoma City $125,000.