Fairfax County officials say they do not have an explanation about what went wrong on area roads when an inch or so of snow fell during Wednesday night’s rush hour.
People reported being stuck in their cars for hours as they tried to get home. Twenty-minute commutes turned into two-hour ordeals all around the Beltway.
The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), and not the county, is responsible for treating most area roads.
Since VDOT — as well as Northern Virginia residents — have had about five days of preparation and warning about the storm expected to begin Friday afternoon, road treatment should be much more effective than on Wednesday, officials said.
“Do they [VDOT] need to do better? Absolutely,” Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova said at a press conference Thursday afternoon.
Once the snow began falling, it was already rush hour — and salt trucks would have gotten stuck in the same traffic as the rest of the motorists, Bulova said.
VDOT said in a release that about About 4,000 trucks will begin reporting at 7 p.m. Thursday to load materials and then stage along interstates, major roads and subdivision streets in northern Virginia.
“We ask that drivers prepare now to stay home [Friday] and Saturday,” Branco Vlacich, VDOT’s district maintenance engineer for northern Virginia, said in a release.
Fairfax County Police Chief Ed Roessler agrees with the advice to stay off the roads.
Call the police non-emergency number 703-691-2131 if they see an unsheltered person in need of assistance. Bulova said there is shelter space for whomever needs it.
Follow Fairfax County’s Emergency Services blog, Fairfax Alerts and social media pages such as Facebook and Twitter.
Fairfax County Fire Rescue asks residents shovel sidewalks near their homes, as well as a three-foot radius around fire hydrants.
Have a back-up power supply, but avoid open flames or running a generator indoors.