PennDot stocks up on salt despite mild winter

Last January, Old Man Winter reared his ugly head, pelting Centre County with snow and ice. So far, 1997 has been mild in comparison, leaving the region with a few inches of snow instead of a few feet, like last year.

With the exception of the recent cold spell, the winter has been temperate when compared to previous years, said Ken Reeves, senior meteorologist for Accu-Weather, 619 W. College Ave.

"We're far below what we've seen in recent years," Reeves said.

Although temperatures are running about two degrees above normal, there is no way of accurately predicting if that trend will continue on a 30-, 60- or 90-day outlook, he said.

Organizations such as Pennsylvania Department of Transportation are concerned more with the ice and snowfall rather than just temperatures, Reeves said.

"Obviously there are years when you're getting punished and years when you're sitting with stockpiles." Reeves said.

Chuck Yorks, community relations coordinator for PennDOT, said next week is traditionally the week when PennDOT uses the most salt and anti-skid materials during the year -- about 10 percent of its total supply for Centre County.

At this point, PennDOT traditionally has used about 45 percent of its supplies. Anti-skid usage is at 22.3 percent and salt is at 28.2 percent for the county this year.

This list of figures translates into roadway improvements if the precipitation remains light.

PennDOT stockpiles salt and anti-skid materials for usage based on a system using weather history of the past five years.

"We have a certain amount on hand, on order, and what can be used," he said.

The maintenance budget goes for the patching of cracks, drainage, basic patchwork, and even the clearing of brush on some rural roads, Yorks said. However, the money saved by not ordering as many materials next year would not be re-budgeted to major highway construction plans, he added.

"In small ways it improves the quality of the ride -- the safety and the smoothness." Yorks said.

PennDOT drivers are equipped with outside thermometers to determine which combination of salt and anti-skid materials to disperse. As the temperature decreases, salt is used to lower the freezing temperature of the precipitation on the roadways.

Anti-skid is used in combination to provide traction for vehicles. When snowfalls are so severe that salt would be relatively useless, only anti-skid is used.

"The driver wants to put down the proper amount of material that will do the job the first time he passes," Yorks said.

On average, Yorks said, Centre County uses 12,800 tons of salt at a cost of $32.95 per ton, and 21,900 tons of anti-skid materials at $5.78 per ton.