A tricky February forecast can mean tricky roads in the Shenandoah Valley

STAUNTON – (1:45 p.m.) Some rain, some snow and possibly some sleet may fall in the Shenandoah Valley and Alleghany Highlands on Sunday, February 12 into Monday, February 13. Motorist should be alert for rain, possibly mixing with snow during the daytime hours on Sunday. Precipitation is forecasted for part of Sunday night bringing additional chances for light rain, snow or sleet. Travelers in higher elevations are more likely to see accumulating snow. As temperatures drop towards dawn on Monday morning, refreezing may occur on area roadways.

The Virginia Department of Transportation Staunton District will have crews out beginning at midnight tonight. With recent warm temperatures the road surface is expected to remain above freezing for much of this weather event.  No brine has been applied in advance of the storm, but roads will be treated as needed. Motorists may experience some wet to slushy conditions in untreated areas depending on precipitation type and amount. Elevated surfaces such as bridges and overpasses freeze first.

Travelers are advised to check weather forecasts along their trip route and use 511Virginia.org for updated road conditions. Conditions may vary across the state with high winds forecasted near the coast.

Seatbelts save lives. Remember to buckle-up when traveling.

Road conditions and traffic cameras can be found on the VDOT 511 website at http://www.511Virginia.org, Roads with snow conditions will be marked minor, moderate, severe or closed.

Road condition definitions:

Closed – Road is closed to all traffic.

Severe – drifting or partially blocked road.

Moderate – snow or ice on major portions of the roadway. 

Minor – bare pavement except for isolated spots of snow, ice or slush.  Driving with caution is recommended.

For a text listing of winter weather road conditions go to http://www.511Virginia.org, look at the orange bar on the top of the page and click on “Text Views” and then click on “Road Condition Table”. Look at the pull down box that lists all jurisdictions.  In this box individual counties can be chosen to view.

On the go?  Then visit VDOT’s Free Virginia 511 Tools to get your 511 app for android or iOS. Traffic alerts and traveler information can be obtained by dialing 511.

The VDOT Customer Service Center can be accessed through its mobile friendly website at https://my.vdot.virginia.gov/. Agents are on site 24/7 every day of the year to assist the public. People can also call the VDOT Customer Service Center at 800-FOR- ROAD (800-367-7623).

The Staunton District Snow Page is on the VDOT website under Travel Center Snow Emergency Pages. The Staunton District Twitter feed is at @VaDOTStaunton.

VDOT statewide Twitter messages can be found at @VaDOT. The nine districts can be found at:Hampton Roads  @VaDOTHR; Richmond @VaDOTRVA; Northern Virginia @VaDOTNOVA;  Fredericksburg @VaDOTFred; Culpeper @VaDOTCulp; Lynchburg  @VaDOTLynchburg; Bristol @VaDOTBristol; Salem @VaDOTSalem; Staunton  @VaDOTStaunton.

VDOT can be followed on Facebook, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube. RSS feeds are also available for statewide information. The VDOT Web page is located at http://www.VirginiaDOT.org.

The VDOT Staunton District serves Frederick, Shenandoah, Clarke, Warren, Page, Rockingham, Augusta, Highland, Rockbridge, Alleghany and Bath counties.

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