The time to prepare is now prior to forecasted winter weather on January 5 and 6

STAUNTON — The Virginia Department of Transportation is preparing for the potential of a high impact winter storm beginning in the late afternoon or evening hours of Sunday, Jan. 5, and extending into Monday, Jan. 6. While VDOT prepares, the agency is asking the public to prepare too.

Tips for public travel include pre-planning or changing plans to ensure travel occurs around a snow event, not during the event. Monitor the weather forecast closely, because weather systems can change. Also monitor the weather along any travel route for possible changes. Conditions can vary greatly from one end of the Commonwealth of Virginia to the other. 

Check 511 at its updated URL and website: https://511.vdot.virginia.gov. The 511 site has traffic cameras, current crash locations, weather conditions and more. The public can sign-up for 511 alerts to be sent to their personal device. On the VDOT 511 website roads with snow and ice 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.

Another information source is the VDOT website at https://www.vdot.virginia.gov. Type in “winter weather” in the search bar located in the middle of the home page. Follow the links to the winter page for driving tips, snow removal procedures, travel kit items and additional resources.

If travel is necessary during winter weather be alert for elevated roadways such as bridges and overpasses that freeze first. The traveling public should also be alert for falling tree limbs and tree debris on roadways from heavy wet snow or ice.

VDOT is also in snow prep-mode. Crews in the VDOT Staunton District, which serves the counties of Frederick, Shenandoah, Clarke, Warren, Page, Rockingham, Augusta, Highland, Rockbridge, Alleghany and Bath, are beginning to pretreat roadways. Some primary and heavily traveled secondary roads are being pretreated on Friday, January 3. Pretreatment will conclude on Saturday, January 4, including the interstate system. Drivers are asked to give crews plenty of room as they apply the brine mixture to the road surfaces. Pretreatment is expected in many areas of Virginia on January 4, so please allow extra time and expect to see trucks out completing this work. 

When the winter weather arrives the VDOT crews will be out and ready to get to work, plowing and treating roads.

Road-clearing priorities are as follows: 

• The Interstate Highway System and limited-access roadways are our first priority.
• Primary roads and major secondary roads with vital emergency and public facilities, or those with high-traffic volumes, will be cleared along with interstate and limited-access roadways as resources allow.
• Low-volume secondary roads and subdivision streets will be treated after higher-priority routes are completed and additional resources are available.

To view a text listing of weather road conditions, go to https://511.vdot.virginia.gov, look at the blue bar on the top of the page and click on “Road Reports” and then click on “Road Conditions”. Look at the pull down box that lists all jurisdictions.  In this box individual counties can be chosen to view. Apps for Virginia’s 511 system are also available for android and iOS devices.

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 X (Twitter) feed is at @VaDOTStaunton. The VDOT Staunton District has a group page on Facebook. Follow VDOT statewide accounts on Facebook, Flickr, and YouTube.

VDOT statewide X feeds 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; and Staunton @VaDOTStaunton.