Georgia DOT begins snow plowing and removal across region; motorists still urged to stay off Georgia roads
ATLANTA, GA - As the impacts of snow, sleet and freezing rain began to grip north and central Georgia on Friday morning, the Georgia Department of Transportation (Georgia DOT) transitioned its operations from pre-treatment using brine to active snowplow and removal in much of the state. With several inches of snow in some locations, more than 300 pieces of equipment are now deployed across the region to plow Georgia roads. Crews continue to work 12-hour shifts and are prioritizing those routes that are heavily traveled by emergency vehicles. However, residents should understand that with continued precipitation still in the forecast for much of today, including sleet and freezing rain, conditions on the roads continue to deteriorate and should be considered hazardous for travel. Numerous crashes and incidents have been reported on Georgia's interstates and state routes. For their own safety, motorists should continue to heed all warnings to stay off the roads.
At a press conference at the headquarters of the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA/HS) on Friday morning, Governor Brian P. Kemp praised the efforts of Geogia DOT and the other state agencies who are playing a key role in Georgia's response to the storm. He also expressed his thanks to the people of Georgia for doing their part and thanked Georgians for continuing to heed warnings to avoid driving if at all possible. "I want to thank our citizens for listening to the advice that we've been giving over the last 24 to 48 hours about being prepared and winter-weather ready," said Gov. Kemp.
As of Friday morning, Georgia DOT crews had treated more than 20,000 lane miles of Georgia interstates, state routes, bridges and overpasses with more than one million gallons of brine, a salt and water mixture that helps keep ice from bonding to the surface of the road. Crews had also applied approximately 770 tons of salt to roadways across the region. All interstates and state routes in the most affected areas had been treated at least once by the time the storm arrived early Friday morning, with most interstates having been treated twice.
As operations continue to treat roads and plowing and clearance are now underway, Georgia DOT Commissioner Russell McMurry explained the department's strategy at Friday's press conference at GEMA/HS headquarters.
"Georgia DOT will remain responsive to road conditions as accumulation continues to occur," said Commissioner McMurry. "Our focus is keeping our interstates operational and moving, with the goal of maintaining at least two lanes of major interstates passable; then we focus on treatment of interstate ramps and state routes." He also encouraged motorists to stay off the roads through Friday to allow Georgia DOT crews to continue their work to ensure they can be treated and plowed as needed.
Georgia DOT warns that with temperatures dipping overnight across much of the region, wintry precipitation that has melted on the roads during the daylight hours may refreeze, making black ice a possibility. Georgia DOT's goal is to plow as much of the precipitation from travel lanes as possible so they can be re-treated in order to reduce the chance of refreezing. Regardless, the potential for black ice in spots makes travel all the more hazardous. Georgia DOT will continue to monitor conditions overnight into Saturday morning to re-treat roads and hit any black ice patches.
A State of Emergency declaration remains in effect across all of Georgia through Tuesday, January 14, 2025. A Winter Storm Warning for north Georgia, metro Atlanta and parts of central Georgia also remains in effect through Saturday at 7:00 a.m.
Georgia DOT closed two express lanes facilities, the I-75 Northwest Corridor Express Lanes northwest of metro Atlanta, and the I-75 South Metro Express Lanes south of metro Atlanta, at 11:30p.m. Thursday evening. The two express lanes facilities were treated overnight in order to help avoid any accumulation of ice or snow. GDOT will hold the lanes closed until it is confirmed they are safe to reopen. Highway Emergency Response Operators (HEROs) will be helping conduct sweeps to make that call.
On Friday Georgia DOT also announced that local transit operations are closed today in the following counties: Athens-Clarke, Banks, Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee, Coweta, Dade, Dawson, Elbert, Glascock, Green, Habersham, Haralson, Hart, Heard, Henry, Jackson, Jones, Lincoln, Lumpkin, McDuffie, NGCA/Fannin, NGCA/Gilmer, NGCA/Gordon, NGCA/Murray, NGCA/Pickens, Paulding, Rabun, Talbot, Taliaferro, Taylor, Three Rivers Regional Commission, Town, Twiggs, Union, Walker, Whitfield, and Wilkes; as well as the Three Rivers Regional Commission, City of Cedartown and City of Gainesville/Hall County. UGA Transit, Southeastern Stages and Greyhound are operating on modified schedules; riders should consult those services for today's modified operations.
For their safety, motorists in affected areas are advised to limit all travel from now through mid-day Saturday. Avoid driving unless absolutely necessary. If you must venture out during this time, please drive with extreme caution and give GDOT crews room and space on the roads to help ensure they can safely do their jobs. Please be aware of the brine trucks and be advised that they must travel 40 mph to properly apply the treatment. Motorists are also advised not to pass a Georgia DOT truck spreading salt or gravel, as gravel may kick up and damage vehicles which are following too closely. Please pay attention and stay back at least 100 feet.
For real-time traffic assistance or information, to report an issue on Georgia roads, or to request roadside assistance contact 511GA by dialing 511 hands-free on your mobile phone, downloading the 511GA app or visit 511GA.org. For a list of facts and materials related to Georgia DOT's winter weather preparedness including fact sheets, photos and video, please visit https://www.dot.ga.gov/GDOT/pages/WinterWeather.aspx.
Georgia Department of Transportation plans, constructs and maintains Georgia's state and federal highways. We're involved in bridge, waterway, public transit, rail, general aviation, bike and pedestrian programs. And we help local governments maintain their roads. Georgia DOT and its nearly 4,000 employees are committed to delivering a transportation system focused on innovation, safety, sustainability, and mobility. The Department's vision is to boost Georgia's competitiveness through leadership in transportation.
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