Deep thoughts from the traffic jam

Posted at 10:47 AM on January 7, 2010 by Bob Collins (5 Comments)
Filed under: Life, Weather

Theory: A two-inch snow fall with a fair amount of wind is more dangerous than a foot-deep snowfall in calm conditions.

Penn Ave & 394

I-35W and 49th:

694 & 15th (Oakdale)

These are not rush-hour pictures from the MnDOT camera. They were taken around 10:30.

Outside of the Twin Cities, MnDOT has released this info:

Southwest-West - Willmar

All state highways in Cottonwood, Jackson, Nobles and Rock are closed due to high winds causing zero visibility and heavy drifting. Snowplow drivers are unable to keep these areas clear.

The following are closure points (locations of gates to close highways)

I-90 from Fairmont west (I-90 is also closed in South Dakota).
Highway 60 from St. James west.
Highway 71 from Sanborn south.

---

Comments (5)

I think a big problem with the current road conditions is that they were never fully cleared from the blizzard. A lot of streets I drive have an inch of greasy hardpack ice. This dusty snow on top doesn't add much traction to that mess.

Posted by Tyler | January 7, 2010 11:34 AM

---

I will support that theory!

I was totally expecting a Jack Handey quote...

Posted by Shane | January 7, 2010 11:39 AM

---

Alternate theory: Driving in snow when traffic is light during the holidays is safer than driving in snow during normal rush hour traffic.

Posted by kennedy | January 7, 2010 11:46 AM

---

In fairness, Penn Ave & 394 seems to look like that in the middle of the summer, and the middle of the night. It never fails to be a big slowdown.

Posted by John P. | January 7, 2010 12:01 PM

---

I think the foot of snow is a lot less scary than an inch of snow over a coating of ice. With a foot you don't worry so much about hitting someone else because the depth slows you down pretty quickly.

Posted by Al | January 7, 2010 12:02 PM

---

Post a comment

The following HTML tags are allowed in your comments:
+ Bold: <b>Text</b>
+ Italic: <i>Text</i>
+ Link: <a href="http://url" target="_blank">Link</a>
Fields marked with * are required.

Name*:

E-mail Address*:

URL:

Remember personal info?

Comments*:

Comment Preview appears above this form upon pressing the "preview" button. Edit your comment and press "preview" again, until you are satisfied with your comment.

Your comment may not appear on the blog until several minutes after it was submitted.

• E-mail this page
• Print this page
• Tweet this page
• Share this

Services

• Hourly Newscast
• HD Radio
• iPhone App / Mobile
• E-mail newsletters
• RSS feeds
• Podcasts
• Submit your photos
• Videos
• Weather
• Most e-mailed stories