ODOT, City Crews Ready To Treat Roads As Winter Weather Threatens

Freezing rain will likely move into Tulsa overnight, meaning by the time you wake up the roads could be covered.

But City and ODOT crews are ready to treat the roads.

The Tulsa metro area may only get rain, but Thursday night, temperatures were lower than first forecast. Should that trend continue, Tulsa area roads could turn to ice.

With winter weather moving in, area roads could be most affected.

"It is Oklahoma, it is unpredictable," said ODOT spokesperson Kenna Mitchell. “It is quite an operation for us whenever we get this in the forecast, and we'll be ready to go."

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation has 20 trucks and 12,000 tons of salt and sand ready for the coming ice-storm.

Mitchell said, "We're making sure we're ready to go, even before that hits."

While ODOT will be clearing away the highways, the City of Tulsa will help with some of the city's expressway system, and, of course, focus on the main streets.

The City said crews are assigned to 35 specific routes, covering more than 1,700 miles of roadway.

Since the storm is predicted to bring a mixture of rain and ice, area crews are not pre-treating roads with brine.

"It doesn't really do any good to put down pre-treatments because they just wash away," Mitchell said.

ODOT will have workers in at midnight to be ready for the storm.

The City of Tulsa is asking people to drive extra slow, keep a greater distance between you and the car in front, and be patient with road crews - something being echoed by ODOT.

"The trucks are really driving on the treacherous part of the roadway, so the safest part for you would be actually well behind the trucks, because, then, you are down on that layer of salt and sand," Mitchell said.

And, don't forget, if you have to be out, be a defensive driver and keep a close watch on other cars.

Mitchell said, "Because once one driver starts to slip, others can start over-correcting, and that can lead to some troubles out there."

ODOT does have a way for you to check and see how the highways are. You can find that information online, or you can call 844-4OK-HWYS (844-465-4997).