What you should consider when driving in the snow

Travel is expected to be significantly impacted Friday as a severe winter storm impacts the entire Middle Tennessee region.

Between 10 and 20 inches of snow is expected to fall in most areas, according to the National Weather Service.

Both federal and state authorities continue to advise against travel on Friday. Travel is expected to become “very difficult” by mid to late morning, and although much of the snow will be gone by Friday night, the impact on travel will continue into Saturday.

Freezing weekend temperatures Saturday will cause remaining snow to melt during the day and likely refreeze overnight through the weekend, resulting in black ice and continued dangerous driving, particularly on back roads, the weather service said.

How to check road conditions in Nashville

The Tennessee Department of Transportation’s Smartway cameras allow road conditions on state highways and major highways to be checked online.

What to Expect on Nashville’s Main Streets and Backroads

The Nashville Department of Transportation completed pre-treatment of the roads on Thursday. Crews will be on standby Friday to salt and plow the roads and will work 12-hour shifts throughout the event until routes are clear, a news release said.

“We have more snowplows serving more routes than ever before,” Mayor O’Connell said in a news release. “I hope all Nashvillians keep an eye on the weather and exercise patience. If a winter storm does occur, we will be prepared.”

Diana Alarcon, director of NDOT, said the department is fully prepared to respond to the upcoming winter weather.

“We have 40 crewed snowplow vehicles ready to ensure first responders can get to people and public transportation can operate safely on any detours,” Alarcon said in a statement. “We encourage everyone to give our teams plenty of space to work, stay off roads where possible and, if you must travel in snow, drive slowly and carefully.”

Primary, secondary and post-secondary snow routes can be found online at nashville.gov. Primary routes have first priority and are released before other routes.

Tennessee officials are preparing and warning drivers to stay off the road.

TDOT crews have been preparing Tennessee roads since Wednesday for Friday’s snow event, driving busy highways and state highways as well as frost-prone areas such as hills, curves, ramps, bridges and interchanges, a news release said.

TDOT also expects to operate expanded HELP routes on Interstate 40 east to the Putnam County line, Interstate 40 west to the Tennessee River, and Interstate 65 and Interstate 24 to the Kentucky state line.

The ministry and the weather service strongly advise against traveling on Friday.

“When it snows in Tennessee, TDOT ice and snow removal crews first focus on clearing interstates and busy state highways. During prolonged weather events, crews may need to repeatedly clear roads,” TDOT said in a news release.

“Equipment will be deployed at various locations to reduce response time and tools such as chainsaws will be available to be used in the event of fallen trees on the roadway.”

Here’s how to prepare for winter road conditions, according to AAA

The American Automobile Association (AAA) is urging drivers to exercise caution and preparation ahead of Friday’s snow event.

“We urge motorists to follow the advice of local authorities and stay home if weather conditions begin to deteriorate,” said Megan Cooper, spokeswoman for AAA – The Auto Club Group, in a news release. “If you must get on the road, make sure you have at least half a tank of gas, reduce your speed significantly and stay away from closed roads.”

If travel is necessary, AAA recommends the following:

Pack a well-stocked emergency kit – Make sure it is equipped with a cell phone car charger, a first aid kit, extra blankets, hats, gloves and coats, drinking water, non-perishable snacks, flashlights and extra batteries, reflective warning triangles and an ice scraper or snow brush.
Always drive at a safe speed – Even if that means going below the stated maximum speed.
Compensate for reduced traction – Increase your interval (typically three to four seconds) to eight to ten seconds.
Allow adequate space for maintenance vehicles by maintaining a clearance of at least 200 feet – If you need to overtake, go to the left of the other vehicle.
Watch out for icy surfaces on bridges and intersections – even if the rest of the road appears to be in good condition.
Avoid braking on ice – When approaching an ice surface, brake as you approach. Check the spinning. Applying pressure to your brakes on ice will cause your car to skid.
If you get stuck in snow or ice, straighten the wheel and accelerate slowly – Place sand or cat litter under the drive wheels to prevent the tires from spinning.
If your tires lose traction, keep looking and steer in the direction you want to go – If the drive wheels start to spin or slip when driving uphill, release the accelerator pedal slightly and then carefully resume driving.
Slow down and walk over – Avoid driving on shoulders or medians to allow first responders, tow truck drivers and emergency vehicles to reach stranded motorists who find themselves in dangerous road conditions.

If you find yourself stranded on the side of the road, AAA recommends the following:

Stay in the vehicle – Your car can provide you with protection so that emergency services can optimally locate you and prevent you from being hit by an approaching vehicle.
To make the gas last longer, do not leave the car running. If there is a long traffic jam, turn off the engine for a while and then turn it back on to warm up the interior if it gets too cold again. Make sure the exhaust pipe is clear of snow.
Avoid driving on the shoulder or median from highways to avoid traffic jams – These must be kept clear so that first responders, tow trucks and emergency vehicles can get to the cause of the problem.
Cold weather can shorten the range of electric vehicles – Electric vehicle drivers should plan more frequent charging stops and identify the location of charging stations before driving off. AAA recommends “preheating” the interior of an electric vehicle to a comfortable temperature while it is still connected to the charger. This reduces the vehicle’s battery requirement to regulate the interior temperature at the start of the journey.

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