RICHMOND, Va. β Virginia Department of Transportation crews continue working around the clock to clear ice-covered neighborhood streets and side roads following last weekend's winter storm, with heavy equipment now being deployed to break up thick ice layers that have proven difficult to plow.
Nicole Bell, communications manager for VDOT's Richmond District, said the vast majority of roads in the district have been treated and cleared, but crews are now focused on remaining neighborhoods and side streets where ice coverage persists.
"We understand that there are some that have not been and understanding that can be frustrating. But the crews are out there. They are working," Bell said.
The remaining cleanup work is more challenging than typical snow removal because crews need heavy equipment to break up thick ice formations before roads become plowable. In North Chesterfield, heavy-duty road graders followed by road plows were observed chopping away at remaining ice on Shiloh Drive.
Jerry Washington, a Chesterfield resident, said main roads have been well-maintained throughout the storm response.
"They've been pretty good, the main roads. They did a very good job at keeping them clear," Washington said. "The street that I stay on they came yesterday and they scraped it full of sand and stuff and that helped us out a lot for getting out."
In the Brandermill neighborhood, roads remained completely ice-covered until sand was applied Thursday morning. Resident Ron McKay acknowledged the delayed response but expressed understanding for the challenges crews face.
"We're dealing with it. It's a little slippery, you got to be careful. You got to know how to drive in the snow," McKay said. "I know they're trying as best they can. It's not Brandermill's fault. VDOT's working as hard they can to get it done."
VDOT is simultaneously applying abrasive sand to provide traction for motorists who need to travel carefully through neighborhoods before reaching cleared main roads.
"And what we're doing simultaneously is we are putting down abrasive sand and things of such to at least gain traction, so that motorists, when driving carefully and cautiously, it's safe for them to move out of their neighborhoods and onto roadways that are clear," Bell said.
Looking ahead to this weekend's expected storm, Bell said crews are prepared with adequate supplies. However, VDOT will not be pretreating roads since sufficient salt remains from the previous storm response.
The upcoming weather event will reset priorities, requiring crews to focus first on interstates, primary roads and high-volume areas while continuing efforts to clear remaining ice from Sunday's storm.
"We go back to the priority plowing status, the interstates, the primary roads, those high volume areas. So we are looking forward, while still working diligently to clear up and to clean out the ice from the last storm," Bell said.
CBS 6 is committed to sharing community voices on this important topic. Email your thoughts to the CBS 6 Newsroom.
π²: CONNECT WITH US
Blue Sky | Facebook | Instagram | X | Threads | TikTok | YouTube
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy. To learn more about how we use AI in our newsroom, click here.
