Sand vs salt: what to watch for on the roads when it gets too cold

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - The Black Hills are currently experiencing a deep freeze, and so far you’ve been told to open your cabinets to keep your pipes from bursting, and to start your car earlier than normal to warm up your engine. But once you hit the streets, there are still dangers that can occur when it gets to be this cold.

The City Street Department works hard to keep the roads safe during winter weather, and usually salting the roads does the trick to melt snow. Salt breaks down the ice and allows for crews to plow, when temperatures drop too low, that salt no longer works, as the water contents never fully melt. When that happens, street crews have to line the streets with sand to create traction on tires.

“Sand is something we are forced to use once the temperatures get generally below 15 and are going to stay below 15 for some time. What happens is salt with still work down into the negatives but it becomes so ineffective that it becomes very cost inhibitive and then we also have to worry about the dust after it. Sand will not cut snow but it acts as a traction aid,” says Jeremy Cahill, Street Maintenance Supervisor, for the City of Rapid City.

The City Street Department predicts that over the next few days, temperatures will drop so low that the snow won’t stick to the road, however, ice will. So, drive carefully, especially at intersections.

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