ODOT says anticipated rain will impact road preparations ahead of midweek storm

MIAMI VALLEY — We are a few days away from a strong storm system that is expected to hit the Miami Valley, bringing snow to sleet and freezing rain.

Matt Bruning, Ohio Department of Transportation Press Secretary, told News Center 7 that this upcoming storm will give crews a run for their money.

“Freezing rain is the one thing we do not want to see,” Bruning said. “We would rather a foot of snow than a quarter inch of freezing rain.”

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Due to the expected rain in the forecast, Bruning said drivers will likely not see ODOT pretreating the roads with brine.

“What we’ll do is have our trucks prepped and ready to go. They’ll be fully loaded in the garage, so that when those first pieces of precipitation start to fall, whether that be freezing rain or snow, our trucks can get right out on the roadway and start dropping material and doing their job,” he said.

Bruning said based on the forecasts, Thursday evening and Friday morning are “going to be really tough times for traveling the state of Ohio.”

If you do not have to travel on Wednesday and Thursday, it may be best to stay home, according to Bruning.

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For those who cannot stay home, Bruning said that ODOT will work to their goal of making the roads “passable.”

“You’ll probably be able to drive on them. Will you be able to go the speed limit? Not anywhere close to it,” he said.

Bruning said that drivers will have to slow down when out on the roads and that means they will need to plan ahead.

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