Crews Work To Improve Tulsa Road Conditions

By Dan Bewley, The News On 6

TULSA, OK -- The roads were clear with the exception of puddles of water Saturday night, but the weather made for a tough day to get around Tulsa.

"I didn't expect it to be this much," driver Sam Cotton said. "I thought we'd come in and plow a little bit and go on home."

Cotton got more than he bargained for when he started his shift behind the wheel of Tulsa snow plow.

"Real crazy right now," he said. "I've never seen it snow in March."

Thirty trucks hit Tulsa streets armed only with a snow plow. City officials say neither salt or sand do much good on moist, slushy snow.

"Sand is more of a traction thing with ice and salt is actually to break the ice or the bond between the material landing and the pavement and basically it's not really bonding, just a matter of moving the material," said Dan Graham with Tulsa Public Works.

The bad weather forced nearly 50 flights in and out of Tulsa International Airport to be canceled. Several others were delayed.

"I don't like to travel anyway, but this makes it a lot worse," traveler Todd Darlington said.

He and his sister Erin spent an unexpected day at the Tulsa airport. They had just spent spring break visiting their mom and drove to Tulsa from Stillwater during the heart of the storm.

Their flights were delayed, and the trio had nothing to do but enjoy each other's company a little bit longer.

"Every extra minute is great," Stillwater resident Pat Darlington said. "It's a gift. It's all a gift.

Whether they were hurrying up to wait or slushing through the snow, it was certainly a busy day around Tulsa.                  

A fresh crew of drivers is on the clock now for the city of Tulsa. Officials say they will be running the trucks through the night and into the morning.

As it gets below freezing the trucks will start using salt and sand to give drivers more traction on the road.